Doctor Temperance Brennan, The Mentor
by Kasper ze Chemist
Summary: What if Booth and Brennan were to get assigned interns for the summer? Can they handle having teenagers work under them? Can the teenagers spot what they cannot?
1. Chapter 1

**This is going to be something different, created from a different perspective. Hope you enjoy!**

The bell rang, signaling the end of the day. Lily Walsh shoved the filled and battered binder into her bag and threw it over her shoulder. She was ready to walk out the door when her chemistry teacher stepped in front of her.

¨Lily, you have a few?" he asked.

"Yep, of course." She followed him down the empty hallway to his corner office. He shut the door and handed her a piece of bright yellow paper.

"Mrs. Red the biology teacher gave me this. It's an internship at the Jeffersonian, a museum in Washington, D.C. You would work with the best forensic anthropologist for the summer. I think that it is the perfect opportunity for you." He held out the paper and she took it.

"But Mr. Paul, it says that housing will not be provided, nor will transportation fees."

"Don't let that stop you. Give it a shot."

She shrugged and nodded. "I guess it can't hurt."

That night Lily went home and looked at the paper. Downstairs she could hear her aunt and uncle arguing again, or perhaps still; she wasn't sure if there was ever an end.

She was a good student, yes, but she felt she had no chance for winning. Besides, her aunt and uncle would never pay for the trip there, or the housing. Her eyes strayed from the paper to the picture of her parents that always sat on her desk. She was in her father's arms at the young age of seven when they had gone to the top of the Prudential Center in downtown Boston. She missed the days when she lived in the city, the days when her parents were still alive, and the days when she was a carefree child again. With a final look at the picture, she decided to apply for it.

Four months later…

The power had gone out again, the fifth time so far in the year and it was only April. She had gotten used to the things, especially after her aunt got laid off from her job. Money was even scarcer than before, and often times she was eating just barely one meal a day. In the late evening, her aunt and uncle had taken her cousin to the park, leaving her in the rapidly darkening room.

She sat at the piano bench and ran her fingers over the ivory keys. She started playing the first song she had learned, Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. Her father made her play it for hours as he typed away his newspaper stories for the Boston Globe in their Boston apartment. She closed her eyes and let her fingers do the work. Only the vibration of her phone on the piano pulled her from her thoughts.

Without looking at the caller ID she tucked the phone into the crook of her neck and answered.

"Hello," she said while continuing to play.

"Hi, is this Lily Walsh?" asked a female voice that Lily didn't recognize.

"Um yes, who's calling?"

"This is Temperance Brennan from the Jeffersonian Institute. I'm calling to let you know that after thousands of applications, I've chosen you as the person to be the intern for the summer."

"Wow, really?" She couldn't believe that she had actually gotten it. Then the pain sunk in when she realized that she'd never be able to afford it. "Doctor Brennan, I thank you for the opportunity, but I'd never be able to afford to go down there and stay there for a whole summer."

Lily heard the line was silent for a moment, but with a shuffle of papers, she replied, "Well let's not worry about that right now. I'll see what I can do to help you out. Does that sound good?"

"It sounds great!" replied Lily with an enthusiasm in her voice that had not been heard since the death of her parents five years prior.

"Great, I'll call you back once I get more details." They exchanged good byes and then hung up. Lily stopped playing and leaned her head back in thought. She hoped that things would work out because she knew that if she wanted to get into a good college she would need this, especially since she had terrible SAT scores and she would need a lot of financial aid. Just as she returned the phone to the pocket of her jeans, her aunt and uncle came barging into the home arguing once again over something trivial. Lily headed upstairs immediately to avoid the argument.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for the reviews! This story is fun to write, yet takes time. Hopefully when school is over I can get back to writing more often. Only a few weeks to go!**

Chapter 2

It was a warm, sticky day when Lily's uncle drove her to the airport. Doctor Brennan had called her back a few days after the initial notification of her getting the position. Doctor Brennan had offered to pay airfare and was allowing Lily to stay at her apartment for the summer. Though at first hesitant about staying with a stranger, the sheer idea of what good could come prevailed and she gleefully accepted. Her aunt and uncle seemed unusually compliant with her summer plans.

Once they found a parking space, Lily was surprised when her uncle followed her into the airport. Once at the gate, as she turned to proceed forward, he put his hand on her shoulder, forcing her to turn around.

"Look Lily. Ever since we lost Stephen and Robin, things haven't been the same. I know that you haven't had the best living conditions and that Denise and I haven't helped much. But I want you to know that we love you and that we want you to take as much as you can from this."

Lily eyed her Uncle intently and then leaned in for a hug. He wrapped his arms around her and held her as he always wanted to, giving her the love that she deserved. After another moment they broke apart and took a step back.

"Well kiddo, go have fun. And please call once in a while, okay?"

Lily smiled as she picked up her bag. "I will. Tell Sam I said bye and that I love him too." With a final wave she moved past security and out on her own for the next two months.

………….

It was a few hours later, under the dark skies of a brewing storm, when Lily landed in Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. It was approaching mid afternoon when she was finally squared away with her baggage. Doctor Brennan said that she would be waiting near the restrooms just outside the security station. Lily wheeled her luggage through the crowded airport, weaving in and out of tourists ready for trips to the warm, tropical climates.

Finally she approached the area where Doctor Brennan was supposed to be waiting. She saw man and woman, which she immediately recognized as Brennan, standing nose to nose. Lily could tell from the body language that they were arguing over something as the man took the defensive pose, which was rather odd in her opinion.

Doctor Brennan was tall and beautiful, and stood pointing at the man and then shrugging. The man, who was rather handsome, stood with his arms crossed in front of his chest, a rather angry look on his face. With their expressions, Lily wondered if they were dating.

Lily, instead of going around the front, she went and stood near a group of Japanese tourists in order to hear the conversation. Sure she didn't blend in, but Doctor Brennan and the man were too absorbed in their own conversation to notice anything.

"Booth, seriously, grow up. I had to get Lily a security clearance. The FBI provides the security. It's not my fault Cullen wants you to take on an intern. You think I wanted Zach working under me at first?"

"No…wait, you didn't want to work with Zach?"

"No, at first I thought that it would slow down my workings. Instead, I learned that it facilitated discussion and I got to help a bright young man grow. I think that it's a great thing.

"I…well…well if we don't get any cases, I blame you."

"Sure Booth, you can blame me," she said with a laugh. She glanced at her watch and remarked, "Lily should be here soon."

"Cool, I can't wait to meet the poor soul that you are going to torture for the summer."

"Hey now, I will provide her with a scientific opportunity that will help her in the future. If anyone will get tortured, it's your intern. Poor kid. When are you meeting him anyway?"

"He finishes school today, so he'll start on Wednesday. And I gotta pee, I'll be right back." The man strode to the bathroom and Lily took it as her chance to approach. She backtracked a bit to make it look like she was coming from the direction of the baggage claim.

When Brennan's line of sight fell on Lily, she smiled and closed the distance. Brennan immediately stuck out her hand, which Lily shook. "I'm Temperance Brennan; it's nice to finally meet you."

"I can surely say the same."

The man that had gone to the bathroom returned and placed his hands on Brennan's shoulders and looked forward. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your little friend Bones?" the man asked with an extremely dazzling smile. Lily figured that he would have any girl at his will with that "make-you-weak-at-the-knees" smile.

"Booth, this is Lily Walsh. Lily, this is my partner from the FBI, Special Agent Seeley Booth. He's the FBI liaison to the Jeffersonian. He brings in the cases and we help give him information."

The man named Booth smiled and extended his hand, which Lily gripped and shook. He gave her a smile and she smiled back. If only he was a few years younger…

"Well, now that introductions have been made, I figured that we could go to the lab so you can meet the Squints… I mean my coworkers."

Booth took Lily's bags and carried them to the car, which was a black SUV illegally parked at the front. They got in, Lily in the back, and drove off.

Lily was quiet as she soaked in the surroundings that would become her home for the next two months. As they got closer, the skyline became more prominent. Her thoughts went back to when she lived in Boston. She missed living in a city where the fast-paced life always intrigued her at a young age.

"So Lily, where are you from?" questioned Booth.

"Um, I grew up in Boston. When my parents died, I moved to New Hampshire to live with my aunt and uncle."

"Oh, sorry to hear about your parents," replied Booth. "So you were a city girl?"

"Yep. I loved the fast paced nature even as a young kid. My dad and I would always go out on the weekends and walk around the city. I probably spent more time in the Commons than some of the homeless that call that place home."

"Ah, so do you like to 'pahk' the 'cah' in 'Hahvid yahd'?"

Lily smiled and sighed. "For the millionth time in my short and boring life, I'll only talk like that when I am excited or angry or not paying attention." Booth chuckled.

"Someone's defensive," he said teasingly.

Brennan smacked at his arm. "Booth, stop."

"Yeah, yeah," he said. "We're here anyway."

Lily looked to the side and noticed the large building,. It was in fact large, covered in glass panels and looked very cool. The adults got out and Lily followed in. First stop was the security station.

"Steve, this is Lily Walsh, my intern for the summer. I believe that you have her credentials for her."

Steve walked behind the booth and returned with a photo id. "Here you go Miss. Don't lose it though,"

"Please Steve," said Brennan. "I recall that the only person to lose an ID was you and you ended up throwing it out in your lunch garbage." Steve turned red in embarrassment and allowed them passage. Lily looked at her surroundings as she followed them through the hallway. The clean feeling of the laboratory went with the glinting silver that made the lab. As other scientists in blue coats toiled past working on their business, Lily smiled. She had a feeling it was going to be a good summer.


	3. Chapter 3

**Well then, I was supposed to be studying and this is what happened. Hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 3**

Lily's first day at the Jeffersonian was a whirlwind of action. She met Dr. Brennan's team, as well as the head of the forensics division. Dr. Brennan had showed her around the Jeffersonian, allowing her to take in what she was going to be doing that summer. Lily felt right at home amidst the hustle and the bustle of the lab.

At six, apparently to the surprise of her coworkers, Dr. Brennan had left the lab and showed Lily to her home. To Lily's surprise, the rich author and doctor lived in a humble apartment decorated with artifacts from various cultures that Lily presumed Dr. Brennan had observed at some point in her studies.

Lily's new bedroom was in the guest room, a room of modest sze in the apartment. Dr. Brennan has set her up with a bed and showed her around, basically telling her that to make herself at home. Lily had graciously accepted, and made herself comfortable that night.

Lily awoke early the next morning, not used to the sound of a constant stream of morning commuters. She dressed quickly and headed to the living room. She heard the shower on and decided to call her uncle to catch up with him.

The phone rang twice before he picked up. "Hello," he said, the sound of a crying baby audible in the background.

"Hi Uncle Sean, it's Lily."

"Hey Lily, how are you? Do you like DC?"

"It's great. Kinda bigger, louder, and more congested than Boston, but still it's fun."

"Cool, cool. How's this Dr. Brennan that you are working with?"

"She's really nice. Her partner works for the FBI and I have my own set of credentials and everything."

"Wow. Maybe you can get on the system and get rid of some of those tickets we have outstanding."

"Very funny. Okay, I have to go now, I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Alright Lily, we love you." Lily hung up the phone, just as Brennan walked in. Her hair was wet and clung to her shirt.

"Good morning Lily," greeted Brennan. "Help yourself to breakfast. I've got bagels and cereal. Do you like coffee?"

"Um I'm fine now thanks."

"Okay, I'll be ready to go in ten minutes." Lily nodded and was heading for the living room when there was a sharp knock on the door. "Lily, can you get that? It's probably Booth."

"Sure!" Lily headed to the door and opened. Booth didn't stand at the door, but rather a young man. He was about Lily's age, maybe a year older. He wore a shirt and tie and his hair was gelled up and looked much more professional than Lily's modest blouse and jeans.

"Um, hi?" said Lily nervously.

"Hi," he replied.

Suddenly Booth's booming voice was audible down the hall. "Oh Theo, I see that you've met Lily. Lily is Dr. Brennan's intern from the summer. Lily, this is Theo, my intern for the summer. Get to know each other because you'll be working together a lot."

"Booth, do we have a case, oh hello," said Brennan, cutting herself off quickly upon noticing Theo.

"Bones, this is Theo Girard, my own summer intern."

"Nice to meet you Theo." They quickly shook hands before Booth spoke up again.

"We've got a case." Brennan grabbed her stuff before the crew headed to Booth's car.

Once in the car, Lily and Theo sat on the complete opposite of the car, occasionally catching each other in a stare. Lily was more trying to size him up. He was strong and carried himself tall and she assumed that he was an athlete of some sort. She could tell that he was one of the popular kids, the kind that she always tried to stay away from. He sat against the window and he leaned his head against his arm, his fingers twirling the gelled spikes in his hair.

In the front seat, the adults discussed the crime scene, talking about places from the area that Lily was unfamiliar with. She was instead gearing herself up for the anticipation of what would be found at the crime scene. Would they be allowed to see the remains? Would they be allowed to make inferences? Or would they just get stuck waiting in the car like dogs?

"We're here." Booth turned around and looked at the two. "You can come with us, but just stay close behind. Do not touch anything, understand?"

"Yes," they replied in unison. They got out to find that they were in the middle of nowhere, on a farm just outside of the city. Despite being early in the morning, the sun was hot and they immediately began to sweat. Theo rolled up the sleeves on his shirt and loosened his tie.

"Booth, where is the body?" questioned Brennan as she scanned the field for signs of animal activity.

"Just up this hill," he replied. He started walking up and pointed in the distance, where there were other crime scene people milling around.

"You're kidding me," whined Theo.

"Nope," replied Booth a bit too happy. "Welcome to your first case."

They approached the outhouse to increasingly larger amounts of flies buzzing around the area. "The owner of the farm says that he occasionally uses it when he works the fields. Apparently yesterday was one of those days. He says that he took his paper and sat down, only to find that it smelled worse than usual."

"Wait, he could tell that it smelled worse?" questioned Brennan incredulously.

"Apparently. Says he alerted local authorities, who then dumped it on us presumably because they don't want to deal with it."

"Well then, let's take a look." Brennan put on a mask and gloves and stepped in. In the single hole, she could see a femur protruding from the slop. "Booth, we're going to need a truck to get all of this so that it can be properly filtered." She peeled off the gloves and threw them in a biological contamination bag. "And find out the last time he used the outhouse."

……..

Back in the Jeffersonian, the biological soup was being filtered. To Brennan's delight, an entire human skeleton had been recovered. Lily stood on the platform next to Brennan, looking at the remains. She was able to see that there was a gunshot wound on the skull. There was a hairline fracture on the scapula and three teeth were missing.

"Okay, the victim was a male," started Dr. Brennan. "We can tell due the area inside the pelvic region. In females it is rounder for child bearing, but because it is more of a heart shape, we can say that it's a male."

"Okay," said Lily, making a notation on the report that Dr. Brennan had given her to fill out.

"The man was average height as we can tell from the length of the femur." She turned to Lily. "You do know what the femur is, right?"

"Yes, it's the longest bone in the body, commonly referred to as the thigh bone."

"Oh no, sounds like a Squinty Word Science-off," laughed Booth as he swiped him and Theo in. "See Theo, these are the times where we run away and not learn."

"Booth, maybe if you learned a thing or two, you'd be able to categorize skeletons and not have to come to me for help." Lily had to bite back a laugh, as did Theo.

"Ouch," said Booth. "You really hurt my feelings. Now, what have you got for me?"

"Not much just yet, I was just telling Lily how we read the bones."

"Oh, see this is the downside of having interns, everything will be slowed down as we wait for you to teach people."

"The victim was a Caucasian male, aged 18-24, around six feet in height." All turned and looked at Lily. Brennan looked over the bones and nodded.

"Good job. How did you know that?"

Lily just shrugged. "I liked to read as a kid, which often entailed everything." She looked at the others who were still staring at her. "What, why are you looking at me?" Theo shook his head and looked away while Booth ran a hand through his hair.

"Um, nothing," replied Booth. "Let's run it through the database and see if it matches any missing persons in the area."

Brennan and Booth walked forward to Angela's office, and Theo moved to follow, giving her one quick smile before moving forward.

Lily shrugged, not understanding the big deal and followed the others into the artist's office.

"Okay, we'll run the markers through the computer to see if we get a match," said Angela, telling the interns the game plan. "Now we wait."

"What is that smell?" asked Booth as he quickly pinched his nose. The group turned around to find Hodgins, covered in god knows what, standing in the doorframe.

"I found a hair," he announced triumphantly. "Complete with a skin tag." Cam proceeded to carefully take the hair with a gloved hand and placed it in an evidence bag.

"King of the lab," added Hodgins with a smile.

"You need a shower," said Theo, which came with a sound of agreement from the group.

The computer beeped. "There were no matches," said Angela.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 1

**Chapter 4**

"Robert Hunter," said Booth as he put another bite of pie into his mouth. "He is the eldest of the three Hunter brothers, very notorious for their meth running through the middle class of DC."

"You speak of him as if you know him," said Brennan.

"Met him once or twice when I was in narco." Booth pushed the pie towards Lily and Theo who seemed out of place at the conversation. "Come on, try some. It's really good."

"No thanks," said Lily with a smile.

"Yeah, none for me," replied Theo.

"Your loss." Booth shoved a big piece in his mouth, just as his phone rang. After a few words he hung up and turned to the others. "Okay, I have the new location where the mother is living. I think we ought to pay a visit there."

….

The mother lived in a shabby establishment outside the city. Booth pulled up to the small neighborhood and turned off the engine. "I think the kids should stay here. If I remember correctly, this isn't exactly Mary Poppins in there."

Before Lily or Theo could argue, they had left the car to walk up the weed covered path. Booth had left the car on for the air conditioner and Theo moved to the front seat and started to fiddle with the radio knob. "What kind of music do you like?" he asked, surprising her.

"Um, anything really. Just no rap or country."

"I agree." He turned it to something that was the alternative hits of the day. As a rock song came on he began to drum along with the beat. Lily immediately recognized it as one of her favorite songs, one that she would turn to when she needed to drown out the shouts of whoever. She began to join him in singing and playing air guitar. Theo looked sideways and smiled.

"You like Linkin Park?" he asked over the sound of the song.

Lily turned it down slightly so that she didn't have to yell over the song. "Yeah, I've liked them from the beginning. The new stuff is different, but hey, I still like them."

"Oh. See I hate the new stuff. I was really liking the rap rock thing that they had going on."

"Yeah, it was good. But oh well."

"Yep." The song was over, but Theo kept tapping at the wheel. "So uh, what other bands do you like?"

"I don't know, there are so many. I mean I listened to the same stuff as my father when he was alive like Metallica and Led Zepplin."

"Oh is your father gone?" asked Theo curiously.

"My parents died in a car crash seven years ago. I've been uh living with my aunt and uncle."

"Oh, oh I'm sorry for bringing it up."

"No, you didn't know, it's okay," smiled Lily, hoping that she didn't discourage Theo from talking to her. "So um, where are you from? Around here?"

"Yep, I live in Alexandria, Virginia. My mother is a Senator and my dad is a professor at Georgetown."

"Wow." Lily looked away, thinking of what her parents did and what her life would have been like had her parents still been around. "My father was a big sports reporter when he was alive. We got to go to Boston area sports events all the time. He took me because my mom really didn't like them and she often needed quiet so she could work on the commercial jingles that she wrote."

Theo smiled. "Sounds like they were fun people. Sorry that you lost them."

Lily leaned against the door, turning her body away from him. "Yeah they were." Immediately she withdrew, not wanting to think of her parents. Sure her life was different without them, but it wasn't terrible. She knew that she still had more than a lot of people in the world. However, she couldn't shake the thoughts of her parents.

She heard the seat beside her make a sound as Theo got closer. She could smell his cologne, which created a warm feeling in her stomach. It smelled good, real good.

"Lily, are you okay?" asked Theo softly.

"Yeah," she replied. She faced him and found out that he was closer than she thought he was. For the first time since she met him, she really took in his features. He had sky blue eyes with short dark hair that he kept gelled up. His chin was peppered with stubble that made him look much older than he really was. He smiled back at her just as the car door opened, assaulting the car with the hot summer's air.

"Hey you two," said Booth. "Get in the back seat. Adults in the front." They clambered over the center console and buckled their seatbelts.

Booth started to speak to Brennan as he was writing something in his notepad. "So it looks like the brothers were having a little spat. We'll have to go find Darrell."

"Do you know his last known address?"

Theo looked to Lily and rolled his eyes. She realized what he meant and smiled. Theo cleared his throat and the talking ceased. Booth's eyes appeared in the rearview mirror, acknowledging him.

"Well aren't you going to tell us what you learned?"

"Yeah, I probably should," replied Booth with a smile. "But then I'll have to tell the rest of Squints and I don't feel like telling it twice."

"What?" asked Lily incredulously. "You really shouldn't treat us like children. I'm sixteen years old and Theo is…" Lily looked to Theo, not knowing his age.

"And I'm seventeen! You should really learn to treat us right," warned Theo.

"Or what?" taunted Brennan. "Are you going to cry? Throw a tantrum perhaps?" Brennan smiled triumphantly at her teasing remarks.

"I don't," replied Theo with a mischievous smile that only Lily saw. "Perhaps this?" He lifted his hand to reveal that he was holding Booth's car keys in his hand.

Booth started patting himself before realizing that they were actually his. "Hey! Those are mine! Give them back!" Booth reached forward and Theo pulled back playfully.

"Damn it Theo. Give them back."

"Nope. We get to drive."

"This is a government issued vehicle registered under my name. If you were to get caught…"

Brennan leaned over and whispered rather loudly into Booth's ear. "I think this is a mutiny."

…

Following directions from memory, Theo was able to drive back to the Jeffersonian without Booth's aid. Occasionally he and Lily would look to the backseat where Booth sat with his arms folded across his chest. Brennan looked fine, just staring out the window as they drove about.

When they exited the car Booth held his hand open, waiting for the keys. Theo handed them back.

"And what do we say Agent Booth?"

"Thanks," he mumbled under his breath. They walked into the Jeffersonian and met with the Squints.

Angela stepped forward, looking curious. "Why does Booth look like a child that got his lollipop taken away?"

"In essence he did," said Brennan. "Theo took Booth's keys. He had to sit in the backseat."

Hodgins clapped Theo on the back. "Good one man. Pulling a fast one on an Army Ranger."

"Enough!" shouted Booth. "He took my keys. Whatever. Shouldn't we be talking about the case at hand?"

"No, not really," said Angela. "It's Friday. On a beautiful warm summer's day. It calls for a party." She pointed a finger at Lily and Theo. "Make sure that they show up 'cause you're all invited."


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry for the wait, but life kinda got in the way. For those that waited patiently evil glare to those that didn't and you know who you are I thank you for the fact that you are reading. For those wondering what's going to happen I do know where I am going it just may take some time to get there. But you'll like it... I hope. For now, enjoy.  
**

**Chapter 5**

The sun was shining brightly on the Hodgins estate when they showed up. Lily was amazed at the size of the home; she had no clue regarding Hodgins financial status until Brennan had mentioned something about the nearly Olympic sized pool next to the hot tub and the mini bar. The house was bigger than Derrick's, her rich best friend from home. Booth parked the car next to the garage and the four got out of the car and headed for the front door.

Upon Angela's urgings, or demands rather, they were forced to return back to homes and retrieve the appropriate summer wear. Lily was glad that she actually packed a bathing suit. She assumed that she would spend the whole time busy at work, but in fact was rather glad that the end of the week was finishing with a relaxing event. She also hoped to use it as a chance to check out the team outside of the work environment.

Four o'clock was rapidly approaching and before the girls knew it, Booth was calling to say that he had arrived to pick them up. All right was restored, as the adults sat in the front. Theo gave Lily a knowing smile.

"He made sure that I would sit in the back," he said.

"Did not!" shouted Booth in return. Brennan turned to him.

"Sorry Booth, but I believe the kid." Booth mumbled something as he pulled away.

Now that they had arrived at the Hodgins estate Booth appeared to cool down a bit. Lily thought it was funny how much he acted like a child. She found it cute that he was in touch with his inner child. It was sort of like a comedy act.

Once inside, Hodgins appeared from the kitchen dressed in a Hawaiian shirt that matched Booth's. Angela and Brennan sniggered, laughing at the dreadful looks they gave each other.

"Aw how cute," remarked Lily daringly. "They match."

Brennan went along. "Aw Jack, you didn't tell me you and Booth conferred on your clothing choices for the day. How sweet." Booth and Hodgins gave the women dirty looks.

"Okay seriously, I'm not liking this intern thing. All you people do is bash me. I don't think that I can take this for another two months." He quickly pulled off his shirt and threw it to the floor with meaning. "I'm going to find a drink in this castle." He stomped off towards what he assumed was the kitchen with three pairs of eyes following his toned upper body. When Hodgins noticed he scoffed at Angela's entranced look. Lily caught herself, but not before the image was implanted in her mind. She smiled to herself and found herself following Theo as he went with the others to the patio.

True to the rumors the backyard was huge. There was room for grilling with a table under an umbrella for relaxing. A minibar was perched against the house. In the grassy area under the shade of an oak tree was a trampoline. But the most dominant form of the backyard was in fact the pool. However the pool itself appeared to belong in the landscape with a small waterfall generating serene sounds.

Hodgins gestured to the table that had food set up on it. "Help yourself to whatever you'd like. I'll start grilling in a bit." All of the adults headed immediately for the table, sitting down and grabbing drinks. Lily went away from the adults, opting to jump on the trampoline. As much as she wanted to sit with them and enjoy the relaxation she preferred to watch their interactions from afar.

She rolled onto the squeaky trampoline and deposited her sandals on the ground. She was on for only a few minutes before Theo strode up to the trampoline.

"Mind if I join you?" He jerked a thumb towards the adults. "They are talking about stuff I don't care about."

"Of course," replied Lily with a smile. She was glad that he was actually willing to talk to her. She could tell from the way he looked and the way he acted that he was one of the popular kids. She wasn't in school, not since middle school before he parents had left. After that she threw herself into her studies.

They were jumping, but before they knew it got old. Instead they mutually stopped jumping and lay down on the trampoline to enjoy the natural shade of the tall oak. Lily's eyes traveled towards the adults on the cabana as their laughter was carried through the air. Lily couldn't help but to notice that Brennan's gaze remained on the shirtless Booth who she sat next to.

"When do you think they'll do it?" they both asked each other at the same time. They exchanged glances and quick laughs.

"Who knows?" questioned Theo. "Though the sexual tension is palpable. I don't know how anyone could work with them two." Theo began removing his sunglasses and shirt. "It's hot out here. I think I might go for a swim." With those words he quickly ran towards the pool and cannonballed into the cool water.

Lily opted not to sit by herself and instead moved towards the adults who were preparing to get into the pool. Lily removed her sandals and shirt before joining Theo in the pool. The cool water was a godsend in the heat of the summer. She swam a few laps around the large pool before noticing the Theo was watching. She lifted herself to the edge of the pool allowing only her feet to remain submerged.

"What?" she asked him curiously.

He simply shrugged. "Nothing…" Their conversation was disturbed by the slashing of something in the water. Lily turned her head to see that Jack had thrown a wide variety of Funnoodles into the pool.

"Noodle war!" shouted Booth as he jumped into the pool and grabbed a blue piece of the foam. Theo reached for a red one and began a sword battle with Booth. Lily laughed as they mixed Lightsaber techniques with the moves of the Matrix to create a humorous battle.

"Dude, we should have jousting battles!" said Hodgins excitedly. Theo came over to Lily.

"Get on my shoulders, we're going to joust." Lily looked to see that Angela was already on Jack's shoulders and Booth was having trouble trying to coax Brennan onto his. With a shrug she slid onto Theo's shoulders and his hands went to her thighs so that he could keep a good grip. He handed her "lance" as they lined up to face Jack and Angela. Brennan had finally agreed to get on Booth's shoulders though it seemed that he was afraid to hold onto her.

"Let the jousting begin!" shouted Booth.

After a few rounds it was clear that Theo and Lily were the better jousting after knocking down the others two time s a piece.

"And the dynamic duo of Theo Girard and Lily Walsh prove to be the triumphant victors in the world of pool jousting. And the crowd goes nuts!" Theo hissed as he said so raising her hands in the air.

"Yeah, but I bet you can't win in pool wrestling," growled Booth as he lunged for Theo. Lily quickly fell back into the water as Theo dived to the left to avoid Booth's swipe.

"Booth, stop being a sore loser," warned Hodgins. "I'm going to start dinner now anyway."

Booth and Hodgins went to start cooking while Brennan and Angela were preparing drinks. Lily retrieved a flotation device from the shed and lay on it, using the sun to dry her before dinner. Theo was swimming around the pool and purposely bumped the raft when he swam under it. Lily laughed at his antics enjoying the relaxation time.

Theo stopped and swam beside her, leaning on the side of the raft. He shook his head, which sent water droplets flying through the air and landing on Lily.

"Thank you Theo, I really appreciate that one."

He smiled. "Anytime."

"Well is there a reason why you are here?"

"Well I'm here because my parents decided to have a kid and then they wanted me to have the best opportunities to make it into the FBI so they made me apply for this thing. That's why I am here."

"Well thanks for your life story."

"Hey if those adults are going to keep pushing us out if their conversations we might as well know each other." Lily considered for a moment.

"Okay then. What's your full name?"

"Theoren James Girard. What is the stupidest thing you've every done?"

"That is most likely irrelevant to anything that we'd need to know."

"Hey I've got nothing but time at this point." Lily glared at him before thinking. "I suppose it was with my best friend Derrick on Halloween. We went around throwing eggs at house for the hell of it. We went to this old guy's house because we knew that he never gives out candy. We started throwing eggs and he came out and started to chase us down the street. We ducked under some bushes to lose him. He called the cops and they stopped us as we were on our way back to my house. We had egg spilled on our shirts but we lied to the cops saying that we were at the civic center at a cooking class. They believed it and we got away."

Theo began laughed. "Wow, that sounds like fun to me."

"Well it was at the time, until the cops came. I guess that makes it my turn. What was the best moment in your life to date?"

Theo's face was contorted in thought, but he saved by Booth shouting that dinner was ready.

…

Dinner passed quickly as everyone savored the easiness of the dinner. Despite being near a hundred during the day, the temperature had dropped quickly, leaving the ones in wet bathing suits cold. Dishes were brought inside and Hodgins lead everyone to the basement where they were shown the big screen HDTV.

"You know Hodgins, if I didn't know any better, I'd think that you were showing off," said Booth as he marveled at the size of the television. "Next year we are having a Super Bowl party here."

"Sure Booth," replied Hodgins. "Only if Angela approves though." He clapped his hands together and moved to a chest that sat in the corner. "I figured that since it was too cold outside to swim or do something, we could watch a movie together. The only problem is that we have to decide on one, together."

It took ten minutes of arguing and an intervening butler to finally decide on a movie. They went with something with the chill factor, a horror movie classic, Friday the 13th.

...

Jack and Angela lay together on a couch as they watched the movie, occasionally making comments as the characters were killed off. Lily lay on the floor using a blanket as a pillow as Theo sat up beside her, using the table behind him as a support. Booth and Brennan sat side by side on the other couch, whispering comments to each other. As the movie winded down, Brennan began getting loud with her pondering over why people would play strip poker at a summer camp, or why people would continue to explore deaths even when they know that there is a killer around.

The music turned peaceful as the movie ended the others began to prepare to go to sleep. However, as the decrepit body of Jason screamed from beneath the lake, Lily couldn't help but to laugh at the reactions of the others (she had watched the movie with her father a long time back and he had laughed at her response to the movie). Angela had screamed and jumped into Hodgins arms. Brennan had let out a scream and gripped Booth's arm so hard that he had screamed in pain. But the reaction that struck her the most was Theo's. He hadn't screamed, nor did he visibly jumped. His hand had flown to hers and gripped it tightly. She looked down at their hands, then up at him, and then at the hands again.

"S-sorry Lily," he mumbled and pulled his hand back as if he had touched a stove. "I was caught off guard."

"Come on you two," said Booth, unaware of what had happened. "Time to go home."


	6. Chapter 6

**Um so I suppose that I should apologize for the delay. Summer was kinda not as I had hoped and I didn't get as much writing time and so I'm sorry for leaving y'all wondering what happened to the story. But until school gets super hectic I hope to be able to continue to write somewhat consistently. **

**As for some of the comments that were being left, I feel like I should explain myself. I feel that Booth would act kinda childish in a case like that, especially if he was looking for attention or just being silly. And as for a kid showing him up, I think that is feasible. You know, kind of making a statement. But at any other time if you feel that I am going out of character, please point it out so I can explain it or change it. **

**As for all the lovely comments, I must thank you for reading and letting me know what you think. **

**And that's enough from me, it's almost time for football anyway. Go Eagles! Go Booth and Brennan! Go Bones!**

**Chapter 6**

Lily headed straight for her bedroom upon entering Brennan's apartment. She flopped on the bed, too tired to even take a shower. Despite being physically exhausted her mind was racing. She hadn't had that much fun in a long time and it felt good to be carefree, or at least somewhat. The biggest thing on her mind, however, was when Theo's hand touched hers. Though cliché and often the part of the movie that she criticized, she could feel a stream of electricity through her body the she could still feel now. She peeled back the covers, hoping that she cool down and fall asleep. It took three cycles of the air conditioning to kick in, but she finally fell asleep.

…

It wasn't the sound of the honking cars that awoke Lily, nor the police sirens in the background. Instead it was the light tap on the door from the rap of Brennan's knuckle.

The door slowly swung open followed by Brennan's head. "Lily?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah," replied Lily, quickly sitting up. "Is something wrong?"

"No, no. Booth and I got called into work today to meet with counsel on a case that we closed a few weeks ago and the guy wants his right to a speedy trial. We have to meet with the prosecution and go over all the details. The only problem is that Booth has his son and we were hoping that you could watch him for a while."

"He has a son?" asked an incredulous Lily.

"Yeah. Sorry, I don't want to seem like I am imposing upon you, we just thought-"

"Don't worry Dr. Brennan. It's fine. I watch my cousin all the time at home."

"You're a live saver Lily," said Brennan with a smile. "Um, Booth should be here really soon." The quick knock on the door followed by the shout of her name let them know that Booth was there. "The door is open!" shouted Brennan. "I'll let you get dressed."

Lily thanked her and quickly made her bed before throwing on jeans and a t-shirt. She went out to the kitchen to find Booth knotting his tie while using the toaster as a mirror.

"Good morning Lily," greeted Booth. He jiggled his leg. "Please get off my leg Park." From behind Booth's leg came a mass of blond curls that quickly disappeared. "Come on Parker, you are never this shy. Say hello to Lily."

The blond curls appeared again, this time followed with a face. "Hello," he mumbled so quietly that she had just barely heard him.

Lily knelt down to his eye level and smiled. "Well hello Parker," she replied. She extended her hand. He looked at it for a few seconds before returning it weakly.

"Bones we're gonna be late and I really don't want to listen to Caroline…" warned Booth.

"Okay Booth. I'm ready. Um feel free to do whatever you'd like." She pointed towards the kitchen. "There are some cereals. Never mind." She reached into her pocket and thrust some money at Lily before Booth started pulling her away. "Theo will arrive in a little bit."

Before Lily could even say good bye the door shut. She shrugged and headed out to the living room where Parker sat on the couch, his fingers playing with a loose thread on the pillow that sat on his lap. His gaze was focused on the corner of the room furthest from where Lily stood.

"Okay then Parker. What would you like to do?" She looked around the room trying to find things to do. "We could watch some cartoons." The boy still didn't look up. Lily sighed and sat next to him on the couch, placing her arm around him. "Well then Parker, if you don't tell me what you want to do, we can just sit here together and admire the wallpaper. I feel that the beige wallpaper really speaks to the room. It makes it the perfectly calm room to unwind after a hard day. The way the sunlight hits it makes it seem like the room is bigger and I bet that at night the effect with the light from the lamps is the same. How do you feel?" Lily smiled as she looked straight ahead; she could feel the little boy trying to contain his laughs.

He tried to stay quiet but Lily swooped in and started to tickle him. The boy rolled onto the ground laughing.

"Okay, okay. Stop!" Lily obliged and sat back as the boy stood up. "Could we make something for breakfast?"

"Of course." Lily walked into the kitchen. "Um… well it doesn't look like she is a cereal fan. How about we make some pancakes."

"Can I help?" Parker tried his best puppy dog face, and Lily smiled.

"Of course."

….

The process of making the pancakes created a trail of flour and other materials that covered the extent of the kitchen. Parker had syrup on his fingers and everything that he came into contact with picked up the property of sticky. Just as Lily was ready to ass the dishes to the dishwasher there was a knock at the door.

Slinging a dishtowel over her shoulder she told Parker to go wash up while on the way to answer the door. She pulled the door back to reveal Theo standing there. He wore black cargo shorts and a white T-shirt. His hair was a mess, telltale of the fact that he just woke up. As he stepped in she could smell some sort of body spray and instantly she was reminded of the previous night. She willed the thoughts away as she shut the door again.

"Um, so what are we doing here on a weekend? I picked up the phone like half asleep and I don't remember anything."

"Agent Booth and Dr. Brennan had to go to meet with someone for court."

"Oh and we get stuck babysitting for the day, how lovely," whined Theo.

"Get over it."

Theo looked at her and glared. "No, I think not. I don't like being treated like—" Theo shut up as Lily shoved a piece of bacon in his mouth.

"Please, get over it." Theo glared as he chewed the bacon.

Just then Parker came running through the kitchen stopping between Lily and Theo. He grabbed Theo's hand, and with all traces of the initial shyness gone, Parker dragged the duo into the living room.

"Look, look!" exclaimed Parker while jumping up and down. He was pointing towards the couch where the cushions were propped up against a coffee table and a quilt used to make a fort. Theo looked to Lily, who shrugged in response.

"Come on guys! Come play army with me!" Theo shrugged and took off his shoes before getting on his hands and knees and following Parker into the dwelling.

Lily shook her head and muttered, "Boys."

…

Half an hour later Lily sat in her bedroom reading a book. The boys were in the living room playing their game and Lily decided that she should let them be. She turned the page and heard a creak that certainly didn't come from the book. She rolled over and faced the doorway to find a socked foot. She marked her page before getting up to investigate the disturbance.

"Ahhhhh!" screamed Theo and Parker as they appeared around the doorframe and threw socks at her before running away.

"Hey!" shouted Lily before picking up the socks and running down the hall to get them. This time, however, the living room was transformed into a fort that spanned the room.

"Come out, come out, where ever you are," she said as she looked around for any signs of one of them. She saw movement to her right and acted, rolling across the floor and pelting the side with socks.

"Man down, man down!" shouted Theo in mock injury. "Requesting backup."

"I'll save you!" shouted Parker. He appeared from behind the couch and threw a sock that went up and over Lily's head right for the shelf of artifacts behind her. A vase perched on the top shelf was hit and immediately it wobbled. Lily jumped in an effort to get to it before it fell, but her foot got tangled in a blanket and she ended up face first on the ground. The vase hit the ground with a resonating crash and shattered.

"Uh oh," said Parker. He moved to the vase and looked at what he had done. "Now Bones is gonna hate me." He started sobbing and ran down the hall out of sight.

Theo squatted next to Lily who was still on the ground. "I'll tell you one thing," he said. "If we're ever in a chase of some sort, I don't want you covering my ass because you'll trip over a rock or stick or something." He smiled and extended his hand to her, which she took.

"Thanks for the confidence," she replied sarcastically. "Look, go cheer up Parker and I'll try and fix this." Theo nodded and headed down the hall in search for the boy. Lily headed over to the mess. The medium sized vase had split into a few pieces though most of them large though some were on the smaller side. She scooped them up and then brought them to the kitchen. She would need glue, toothpicks, and Q-tips. She found the glue and toothpicks in the kitchen and headed towards the bathroom to get some Q-tips. On the way she passed by Brennan's office where Parker and Theo were. Curious, she stopped to listen.

"Come on dude," urged Theo. "It's okay. Lily's going to fix it back to the way it was and it'll be perfect so that no one will ever know what happened."

"Can she really do that? Make it perfect?"

"Of course she can. She's very good like that." Theo patted Parker on the back. "Come on buddy, let's go watch her work her magic." Parker sniffed and then Lily heard the chairs move and she headed back to the kitchen before they saw her.

…

It took her an hour, but she got the vase back to standing and the cracks almost invisible.

"Wow!" shouted Parker. "You're very good!" Parker hugged her. "Thanks!"

"No problem Parker, but I think that for the rest of the afternoon we should find a kid friendly thing to do."

"Hmm," said Theo who was also sitting at the table, though working on a crossword puzzle. "How about we go back to my house. My younger sister is Parker's age and I have more kid friendly things than good ol' Doc here does."

"Good idea," said Lily. They cleaned up the living room and made sure the place was spotless before getting ready to leave. Lily was about to shut the door when the phone rang from inside the apartment. She ran back inside to pick it up when the answer machine clicked over and she heard Brennan's voice.

"Hello."

"Hey Lily, it's Booth. How are things going?"

"Um good. We were all going to head over to Theo's house because there are more… kid friendly things to do there."

"Yeah, the house is like a museum. Um I called because Bones and I may get stuck here longer than we thought. It looks like we won't get out until late afternoon."

"That's okay. I think that we can manage on our own."

"I should hope so. Alright then, talk to you guys later."

"Bye Agent Booth."

Lily hung up the phone and left the apartment t o where Theo was parked. He drove a black Honda Accord and he leaned over to open the care door for her. She climbed in and buckled up.

"Off we go," said Theo.

…

Theo Girard lived in a home that was not much smaller than the home of Jack Hodgins. As Theo pulled into the driveway Lily was imagining what it must have been like to grow up in such a big, beautiful home. Once parked, they got out and Theo's mother was waiting at the door.

"Theo I thought I told you to do your laundry last night!" she scorned. "Oh sorry, who are your friends?"

"Mom, this is my colleague, Lily Walsh. She's the science genius that I was talking about. And this is Agent Booth's son, Parker."

"Oh he's so cute." She extended her hand towards Lily. "I'm Maggie and it's nice to meet you."

"Same," returned Lily with a smile.

"Well I'll let you kiddies do what you feel. Theo, your sister is upstairs in her room."

Theo nodded and the rest followed inside. If the outside was beautiful then there existed no word to describe the inside. The foyer had marble floor the caused sound to reverberate throughout the high ceiling area.

"Samantha!" shouted Theo. "Get down here!"

"Um, isn't it easier just to walk upstairs and get her?" asked Lily.

"Probably." A little girl of about seven years walked downstairs. "Parker, this is my younger sister Samantha." The kids stared at each other for a moment. "Now, go play!"

"Wanna come see my room?" asked Samantha.

"Okay." Parker followed Samantha up the stairs.

Once out of sight, Theo turned to Lily. "So, what would you like to do?"

"I don't know what there is to do."

"Okay then. Come on, the game room is downstairs." They headed to the basement where there was a big screen TV and a variety of video game consoles. "I was, well am, kind of spoiled."

"No, really?" Lily sat on the sofa. "Do you have Call of Duty 4?"

Theo went over to the Xbox. "Hell yeah I do." He threw her a controller. "We'll play online."

…

"Come on Theo, get the guy!" shouted Lily. Two hours later, they were still playing the game. Theo was surprised that Lily was so good, however once they got used to each other's playing style they became a very deadly team.

"I'm trying! Where's my sniper support on the southern flank?"

"Um trying to defeat the guys coming up the ladder that are kicking my ass." The screen went dark signaling the game was over. They had lost by one point.

"Thanks a lot Theo." Lily got up and headed towards the piano that was in the corner.

"What, you are going to blame this on me? I think not, in fact I think that if you didn't take the stupid bolt action rifle you'd have been able to take out guys faster."

"Don't start on me. I've saved you many times." She started playing a simple tune on the piano similar to The Entertainer.

Theo had no reply because he knew it was true. Instead, he moved over to where she was by the piano. "You're good."

"Thanks. My dad played and then he wanted me to play too."

"My mother made me take lessons when I was like eight and I can play like half of one song."

"Really?" She scooted over, allowing him to take over. "Play it."

He laughed. "I'm nothing in comparison to you."

"Just play." He sighed and started playing the right hand portion of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.

"Told you I was lame."

Lily laughed. "You're not lame."

"Thanks for the boost." Just then there was a vibration and Theo answered his cell phone.

"Yo…oh okay… yeah we can… sure no problem… see you soon." He returned the phone to his pocket. "Booth and Dr. Brennan are finished. They said that we should meet them at the dinner."

…

After promising to come back at some point before the summer was over, Maggie allowed them to leave. The drive back to DC was quiet as Parker was tired from playing and being up early and Lily was busy thinking. Her mind was swirling with thoughts of Theo. She knew it was just some kind of teenage lust, but she was picturing a life in which he was always around.

"Did you hear me?" asked Theo again with a sideways glance.

"No, what did you say?"

"I asked if you wanted to listen to any music."

"Oh, sure. Pick something."

They pulled up to the Diner singing Queen's bohemian Rhapsody. Parker had nodded off at some point somehow not awaking with all the terrible singing.

"Lily, look." Theo pointed to a couple in the booth ahead of them, which she realized were Booth and Brennan. They were sharing fries off a plate and staring at each other in that love struck teen kind of way.

"How long do you give before they cave?"

"Not long now. I mean seriously, how long can two people dance around each other's feelings?"

"A while."

Lily got out of the car and gently nudged Parker to wake him up. He was still groggy so she offered to give him a piggyback ride into the dinner. Once inside Parker jumped down to hug his father.

"Hey bub, did you have a good day?" Parker talked about everything they did while Lily and Theo slipped into the booth opposite Brennan. Parker sat on Booth's lap as he told about the events.

"Oh and I learned that Lily is very good at fixing things."

At hearing that, Brennan's interest seemed to peak. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing." Their saving grace was that everyone's dinner had arrived. Lily smiled as she ate. Seeing Booth and Parker happy and Brennan watching happily made her miss her family, but she was happy to know that there were others in the world that still had the love and compassion for others.

"Who wants ice cream sundaes?" asked Booth. There was a unanimous yes.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks for the reviews and for reading! It's good to know that people like to read me stuff!**

**Chapter 7**

It was Monday, the slowest and most painful day of the week. With the events of the weekend far behind, everyone returned to normalcy. Booth was with Theo as they went to the Hoover building in order to learn about some of the things. Lily stayed with Brennan in hopes of gleaning something from the bones.

Lily was working on her first skull reconstruction under the supervision of Brennan. In front of her were all the tiny pieces of the skull and then a picture of what it should look like. Lily didn't want to do it at first because she feared making a mess. Brennan encouraged her to try and respectfully assisted her in putting the pieces in the right place.

"Dr. Brennan, this looks different," said Lily as she handed the piece of skull fragment to Brennan.

"It looks like it's from the occipital lobe." She rolled the chair to the magnifier and looked at it. "It's definitely from the occipital lobe. It looks like it is pitted."

"What could do that?" asked a now intrigued Lily.

"I'm not sure. It could be something chemical or even from someone trying gouge out the eye. But there was no other signs of any other attempt at disfigurement."

"Didn't Agent Booth say that the victim and his brother were in the drug business?"

Brennan grabbed the file from the table beside her. "Yes, nice memory. He was the eldest and the one involved in the peddling of the drug. What are you thinking about?"

"Well I remember learning in high school that meth labs create many hazardous chemicals like phosphine and hydroiodic acid."

"I suppose those types of injuries, if left on the bone it could cause those kind of markings, though there isn't much research on this type of injury."

"Oh."

"Well no, don't sound too dejected yet. The beauty in science is that we can come up with our own experiment and test the results." She walked to the end of the platform and motioned for Hodgins to come up.

"Yes Dr. Brennan?" he said once swiping his card.

"Lily proposed that some pitting marks on the skull fragments might be from the chemicals found in a common meth lab explosion."

Hodgins smiled as he listened. "I'll get Zach."

Hodgins nearly skipped off the platform as he went to collect Zach. Lily looked at him questioningly. Brennan just smiled. "They like to um, test the boundaries of science."

…

"Bones!" shouted Booth as he stepped up on the platform with Theo trailing not that far behind. "Where are…you?" he asked to thin air as he looked around confusedly for Brennan.

"Booth, we're over here!" she called from one of the rooms to the side. Lily, Brennan, Hodgins, and Zach were sitting in the room wearing goggles. Their focus was on a chemistry set up in front of them. Hodgins passed two pairs of goggles to Booth and Theo.

"You guys may want to put these on," he warned.

"Um, care to explain what's going on?" asked Booth as he donned the glasses.

"Lily noticed some marks on the skull that looked to random to be from an instrument of some sort. She hypothesized that perhaps a meth lab explosion could have caused the injuries."

Booth looked over to Lily. "Well very good. You might as well be a true Squint." Lily smiled in response.

"Okay, I'm ready," announced Hodgins. They left the room so they could watch from a safe location. "Okay, commonly in make your own meth labs you take pseudoephedrine or ephedrine as one of the starting materials. It's combined with other chemicals and besides meth you get a couple of kilograms of very nasty chemicals that could kill. What Zach and I did was try to rig it so that it simulated the release of ethanol vapors which would trigger an explosion with the heat source."

"Sounds complicated," stated Theo.

"It's pretty easy, actually," stated Zach.

"Okay, let's get the show on the highway."

"Road, Bones. Let's get the show on the road."

"Excuse me, what show?" asked Cam as she walked onto the platform.

"We're running an experiment to see what effects a chemical explosion would have on the skeletal system," explained Zach.

"I see." She looked around at the group. "Well then, I suppose you may carry on." As the words left her mouth, there came a boom as a splatter of chemicals amongst the plastic containment. "Well definitely carry on. Oh by the way, there is going to be a social gathering next Friday with the Jeffersonian and some of our donors where we will be honoring some of the accomplishments the institution has had over the past fifty years. I know these things are boring, but I expect all of you to attend." She looked at the young ones. "You two also."

The group watched as Cam retreated and then returned to watch the experiment. The material started to drip down the glass creating a streak.

Zach carefully chipped a piece of the bone and the handed it to Brennan who placed it under a microscope for comparison with the other piece. She took a peek before leaning back and looking at Lily.

"Well Lily, what do you think?"

She squinted to get a better look and nodded her head. "It looks like a match to me."

"Alright, good enough for me." Booth gestured for Theo to follow him. "Come on, we're going to try to get a search warrant."

Hodgins looked back at the mess that was back in the room. "I'm not going to have to clean this up, am I?"

Brennan, Lily and Zach all nodded and quickly dispersed into other areas. "Damn," muttered Hodgins to himself.

…

Brennan and Lily were sitting in the office when Booth appeared with Theo a few hours later.

"The house was clean," said Booth as he plopped on the couch with Theo following in suit. "We searched every nook and cranny and came up empty. No chemical waste, no makeshift lab, nada."

"What about the credit card purchases?"

"It's going to take some time to get that." Booth looked at his watch. "Shit, we're going to be late for Sweets."

"Who's Sweets?" asked Theo.

"Our therapist," replied Booth and Brennan at the same time. Lily and Theo just snickered at the adults.


	8. Chapter 8

Author Note

Um yeah, sorry about taking so long to post this story. I just want to let you know why it takes so long. This is the one story that I have right now that I like to take care of, make sure that it's not lame and make sure it makes sense. Besides I made it a case fic so that also takes a lot of time. It's really hard to think of intricate ways to kill people…

So thanks to you that review, maybe one day I will have the time to reply to your reviews. But thanks for sticking with me and reading. Y'all rock!

End Author Note.

**Chapter 8**

The waiting room was nearly silent; the only sound was coming from the receptionist in the corner that was smacking her gum. Booth and Brennan sat together at the far wall, each perusing a magazine and acting as if nothing was different. Theo had gone to use the restroom so Lily opted to take a seat opposite the large window. The sun was shining now, but the weatherman was forecasting thunderstorms for later in the day. Lily spent the time watching as the few clouds passed by.

The door opened up and a young man walked out. Lily was surprised to see that Booth and Brennan immediately stood up. That was there therapist?

"Good afternoon Agent Booth and Dr. Brennan," greeted the young man. His gaze shifted to Theo and Lily. "Em, hi."

Booth patted the man on the back. "Sweets, that's Theo and Lily. Bones and I have interns this summer and we couldn't just leave them behind.

"Ah yes. Why am I the last person to always find out about these things?"

"Don't know Sweets, don't know," replied Booth as he and Brennan walked into the room. Lily and Theo followed suit, taking a seat on the couch adjacent to the one by Booth and Brennan.

"So I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Lance Sweets." Theo and Lily nodded. "Well I work with Booth and Brennan here to help their communication skills as mandated by the FBI. I also help with cases that need criminal profiling."

"Yeah yeah Sweets, let's get this show on the road," urged Booth.

"What's with the urgency today Agent Booth? Hot date tonight?" The room looked at him expectantly.

He leaned back and put up his hands. "Hey number one, I don't have a hot date tonight, and number two, even if I did it wouldn't be any of your business."

"Okay, that aside, let's get going. I think that we should work on communication skills for the time being because apparently you guys are deficient in that area." They all groaned and followed Sweets' lead.

…

An hour and a half later they found themselves at the diner, again. Theo twirled a fry in some ketchup lazily and then stared at it. "I'm not complaining or anything, but do you guys ever eat anything other than this food?"

Booth looked to Brennan and shrugged. "Not really. Though Bones makes an awesome mac and cheese."

Theo's eyes went wide. "Really? I love mac and cheese."

"I guess I could make it for dinner one night if you guys really want it," said a blushing Brennan.

"That's a deal Dr. Brennan," said Theo. Lily observed the conversation with a smile, noting how easy and normal things seemed to flow together. It had only been a few weeks, but they acted like they knew each other for a long time. Lily watched as a woman entered the diner and was surprised to see that upon closer inspection it was Angela. She slid into the booth, next to Brennan and Lily.

"Hello all," she greeted with a smile.

"Good evening Angela," replied Booth with a smile. "To what do we owe this pleasure?"

Angela turned to Brennan. "IS he being smart with me?" Brennan shrugged. "Whatever. I came here to pick up the girls so we can do some shopping for the gala on Friday. Hodgie gave me his credit card so let's go."

"What? I thought tonight we were going over paperwork," said Booth.

"Unless paperwork is your keyword for sex, and I know it's not, there's nothing that urgent that needs to be done." She pushed Brennan along. "Good night boys."

…

They sat in the food court at the mall eating some ice cream to replace the calories they burned walking around the mall for the perfect outfits for the each of them. Angela had found the perfect dress for both Lily and Brennan and had them easily accessorized. She then took another painstaking hour walking everywhere trying to find something that would knock Jack out of his shoes. They finally found it and were able to take a break before leaving.

Angela savored a few bites the sweet flavors of the ice cream before looking to Lily.

"So, has Theo asked you out yet?" she asked nonchalantly.

Lily nearly spit out her ice cream. "Excuse me?"

Angela smiled devilishly. "You heard me."

"Theo and I aren't like that. We've just become friends after being thrown into the same situation and not knowing anyone else."

"Okay, if that's what you want to think. If you both bickered a little more and you each had guns I think that you could be Booth and Bren."

"Ange! Stop characterizing us like that!" said Brennan. Lily just laughed.

"Sorry Angela, but we're just friends. He's a really nice guy though and I'm glad I was able to meet him." Lily shook her head to add some proof behind her statement, yet there was doubt coursing through her veins. Sure Theo was good looking and he really was a nice guy, but even though she was attracted to him she was sure that he didn't reciprocate the feelings.

…

The morning came with giant rolls of thunder and sheets of rain. Lily wanted to stay huddled under her blankets, comfortable and peaceful. Brennan knocked on her door, signaling that it was time to get up and she sighed as she got her things to shower.

When ready, they headed for the Jeffersonian, stopping at a small café to get breakfast for the team first. Once getting there, Brennan was surprised to see that Booth and Theo were sitting on the couch in her office.

"What are you guys doing here so early?" she asked as she set the food down.

"Credit card records came back, but there's nothing conclusive. I've brought Darrell Hunter in for questioning though."

"We'll drop off breakfast off with the others and see if Hodgins and Angela can find anything that goes along with meth production while we are on the way to see Robert Hunter."

…

Darrell Hunter didn't look like the kind of guy that would have been involved in a drug ring. Dressed in a business suit and tie, with his hair gelled to the side Hunter sat tapping his fingers on the table.

Lily and Theo sat in the observation room and watched as Booth and Brennan sat quietly in the interrogation room. Booth was getting antsy as they awaited the phone call from Hodgins.

"So Darrell, what do you know about what happened to your brother?" asked Booth in an effort to get the man to talk. Darrell however, simply smiled and continued tapping at the table. Just then Booth's phone rang and he picked it up. It was short and as he returned it to his pocket, they could tell from his facial expression that it was not good. Booth signaled for Brennan to follow him to the other room. They joined Lily and Theo in the observation room.

Booth ran a hand through his hair. "Well Hodgins cannot find anything Robert Hunter's credit card reports that would link them to methamphetamine production."

"So what now?" asked Brennan.

"We have to get this slimeball to talk. But it sure as hell looks like he's not going to budge." Booth sighed before heading back out the door.

"Where's my son?" shouted a woman from down the hall. Lily and Theo popped out of the room to see a woman following a man in a suit. She walked up the Booth. "I told you to stay away from my boys." She went into the interrogation room to collect her son.

"Agent Booth, I'm Mr. Hunter's lawyer Stanley Beagle." He took a card from the side of his briefcase. "Next time you need to speak to my client you can contact me first." The three of them walked out of the interrogation room. On the way down the hall Darrell turned around and gave Booth a wicked smile as well as a wave. Booth groaned in anger and punched the table in the interrogation room.

…

They sat in Brennan's apartment after Booth convinced her to make the mac and cheese that night. She and Booth were in the kitchen working on dinner, leaving Lily and Theo in the living room. Theo was flipping through the channels lazily, while Lily was reading a book. Bored, Theo threw the remote to his side and inched closer to Lily. She could smell his cologne and immediately her thoughts shifted to her conversation with Angela the night before.

"What are you reading?" he asked her. She simply held up the book so that he could easily read the cover. He sighed. "I was just trying to make some light conversation. Jeez."

She closed the book, but used her finger to keep the page. "Lovely weather we've been having, don't you think?" She put the book back up to cover her face. "That is making light conversation. You are just being distracting."

He leaned even closer so that he could read the words. His arm was brushing hers and she had to suppress the urge to shiver. "Is this distracting?" he asked her.

"Um yes, very." She pushed him off of her and put the book down. "I'm going to read in my room until it is dinner time so that I'm not distracting." She walked down the hall to her room and turned on the small lamp beside her bed.

She threw the book to the floor in a humph. He was starting to get to her and she didn't like that. Of course she had liked boys before, but they were never ones in her reach. She would rather stare across the classroom and day dream about them. But Theo, he just kept edging closer to her and she was beginning to the think that maybe she had a chance with him. She shook her head. Who was she kidding? He was rich and cute and definitely the type of guy that had girls flying at him from all directions.

The door to the room opened and Theo walked in. "That's not reading." He pointed to the book on the floor.

"Really, I thought that I was. I must be getting old." Theo smiled and jumped on her bed, taking up the end.

"Have you always been a smart ass?"

"Unfortunately it's one of the things that I inherited from my father."

"I inherited my good looks from my father."

"Yep." She put a hand to her mouth. Did she just agree that he was good looking? Theo just smirked.

"Thanks a lot. I love compliments. My ego is really hungry you know." He stood up and put his hands in his pocket. "Look, I was wondering. During the thingy we have to go to tomorrow, could we you know, hang out there? I mean I know that we really don't know anyone else anyway, but I just don't want to get stuck talking to old people."

Lily smiled at the way the once very articulate Theo was now reduced to his teenager form. "I don't know. I was looking forward to meeting more people, you know. To take advantage of this as a way to branch out."

"Oh, okay then. Pretend that I didn't ask."

Lily stood and smiled. "I was just kidding." She patted him on his back. "I think dinner should be ready soon."

They walked down the hallway back to the kitchen. Lily could feel him watching her the whole time. She had to smile on the inside though. Maybe she did have a chance with him.


	9. Chapter 9

_Well for starters, I kind of changed the story around, I'm going to add another day until the dance thingy that we have coming up. So that will be all in the next chapter. As for this chapter, it may be a little boring and more of filler than anything else. I hope I didn't go too out of character, even though I did create these characters… haha. Well thanks for taking a peek!_

**Chapter 9**

They sat on the platform, leaning back on the comfortable chairs with their feet on the railing. Theo had a few lollipops and he gave one to Lily, so they sat observing Brennan's office.

"It's really sad that they have no clue, isn't it," said Angela as she approached the duo on the platform. They turned around in their chairs.

"I know," replied Theo. "Are they always like that?" He gestured to how he was sitting on her desk and they were laughing at something unknown to the viewers.

"It's been a lot more lately. It's like they know it, but ignore it. They just need something to push them in the right direction."

"It seems like you've tried," pointed out Lily.

"Can't say that I haven't. Though Bren's got this amazing dress for tomorrow night so I'm hoping that may be the final straw."

"Maybe we can get them to dance to something. Is there a DJ?"

'Actually there is a live band just playing the basics, at least that's what Cam told me."

"Darn," replied Theo. "It would have been cool to sneak a song on there to get them to dance to."

Angela smiled. "Well Theo, according to your Facebook you're a great singer."

Theo turned ten shades red. "I… wha… how can you see it?"

"My little secret. You shouldn't put things on there that you don't want others to see."

Lily turned to Theo. "You sing?"

"I, yeah, so?"

"Nothing, I just think it's cute."

Theo just glared at her. "Well you Theo, maybe you could serenade them from the stage. I'm sure I could _rearrange_ something with the band…"

Theo looked to Lily who simply smiled in return. "We'll discuss it," replied Theo. Angela smirked before cheerily leaving. Theo made sure that Angela was out of earshot before turning to Lily.

"Look don't feel forced into it," he started, but stop when he saw the smile on her face.

"Are you kidding? This could be lots of fun!"

He was about to reply when Booth came dashing out of Brennan's office. At first she thought that he was angry, but as he got closer he explained.

"Theo, I forgot about a meeting with Cullen. He wants to talk to you about how the summer is going."

"Okay." Theo stood up and started to fix his tie. "Lily, I'll come pick you up a little bit later. I'll call you first."

Lily smiled and watched his retreating form.

…

Theo arrived back at the Jeffersonian at a quarter past two. In the time since his departure, Zack was showing Lily how they work on the remains from limbo. They were mainly examining remains that were removed from a pond in Virginia. After that, Lily was going to ask Brennan if she could go with Theo to do something, but Brennan beat her to the punch.

"Um Booth and I have to go meet with a judge for the case, but Theo said that you two had something to do so we'll talk to you later with the details." Lily nodded in understanding just as Theo walked in. The tie was once again loose around his neck and his hair was in different directions, most likely from driving with the windows down.

He gave a quick wave to Brennan as she hustled past. Lily grabbed the backpack that she kept with her and followed Theo out. The sun was hot enough, but when mixed with the humidity it became unbearable. They rushed to Theo's car, trying to spend as little time in the death trap as possible. Theo started the car and turned up the air conditioning.

"Holy cow it's hot out there," exclaimed Theo. He loosened the tie from around his neck and undid the top button to allow some air flow. "Want a milkshake?"

"I don't have any cash on me, but if you want one go ahead and stop."

"Nonsense. The drinks are on me."

"Thanks…"

…

After stopping for milkshakes they headed to Theo's house. His parents were still at work and his sister was at daycare, so they had the whole house to themselves. Theo got some snacks from the kitchen and then gestured for Lily to follow him upstairs.

"This is my room." Theo opened the room to reveal a sparsely decorated room. It was a decent size, with a large desk next to the window. He had his own desktop computer there, as well as a TV in the other corner. There were pictures of him playing hockey and lacrosse hanging on the wall. He sat beside the computer and gestured for her to sit on the bed. She flopped on the black comforter and sat cross legged.

"So, what exactly are we attempting to here today?" she asked as she took a sip of her milkshake.

"Okay, well we need to get Booth and Brennan together tomorrow at the dance thing."

"And why do we _need_ to get them together?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. It seems like people have been trying for ages and haven't succeeded. Maybe we could be the ones to do it. I'm sure we'd be on the Jeffersonian wall of fame or something."

Lily laughed. "Yeah, I'm sure." She laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. "Well, how do you want to accomplish this? You're going to sing?"

"Well Miss Scientific Method, yes."

"What song?"

"No friggin' clue," he replied deadpan.

"There are hundreds of songs that can be done. Well is this in a serious tone or a joking tone? What kind of song can you even sing?"

"Hey what's with all the questions?" he asked with a glare. "Wait a minute, you don't think that we can pull this off."

"Not really." He stood, angry now, with his hands on his hips.

"Why not? Don't you think this would be fun?"

She rolled onto her stomach so that she could face him as she spoke. "Hey, I'm a realist."

He shook his head and turned to the computer to google something. "Well I thought I had a partner in this but I guess I don't." Lily rolled her eyes.

"Fine, if there is no need for me here then I'll just go downstairs and watch some TV."

"Fine." Lily grabbed her backpack and walked down to where she knew the piano was. It was true, she didn't think that their plan who work (how the hell would they even pick a song, let alone get on stage), but she supposed that she could try something downstairs.

Sitting on the bench she pulled her ipod out of her bag and switched to a soft genre and started listening to songs, thinking of the lyrics that could best describe the relationship of Booth and Brennan.

After shuffling through fifty songs she started getting bored and took out her phone to dial her uncle. He picked up after three rings.

"Liliy!" he said excitedly. "I was going to call you tonight. I got promoted to detective!"

"Really Uncle Sean? That's great!" She was really happy for her uncle. He was a state police officer for five years and was always looking to become a detective. Though he passed the tests with flying colors, department cutbacks always prevented the allowance of his promotion. "How's Aunt Denise taking it?"

"The hours are a little more, but with more money she can work less to take care of Sammy."

"That's great. When's it start?"

"Next Monday actually. I've got the weekend off so Denise and I were going to spend it together."

"You guys deserve it. I'd watch Sammy for the weekend if I was there."

"Hey thanks for the offer. Anyway Sweetie, what can I help you with since you called me?"

"Oh yeah, I'm trying to do something and I need a really good love song that a friend of mine can sing to two people."

"Well I'm not really good with all that stuff. Did you look at Michael Bolton and all of the standard guys? Barry White?"

Lily laughed at the thought of Theo singing Barry White. "Yeah, but nothing seems to work. I think that I might just be picky."

"Yeah maybe. I'm sorry I'm no help. You could try calling your aunt when she gets home from work. I'm sure she could come up with something."

"Okay, I'll call later. Enjoy your last few days of freedom Mr. Detective Bigshot."

"Love you too Lily." She smiled as she returned her phone to her pocket. Upstairs Lily could hear something playing and it took a few notes before she realized that it was "This I Promise You," by NSYNC. She ran through the words in her head and then bound up the stairs.

"Theo! That's it! That's the song!"

…

Realizing that the lyrics fit the couple grandly, they worked on formulating how they wanted it to sound. Theo convinced Lily to play the piano for the song and she spent some significant time going through the internet to get the sheet music for the song. She was downstairs by the piano playing through the song. Theo was practicing his falsetto, which to Lily's surprise was actually halfway decent. They did the song a second and third time until they were absolutely sure of the plan.

Theo was dancing around the living room, happy that his plan worked. He called Angela to let her know what they were going to do tomorrow and she promised to help make sure that the band knew what was going on. Lily watched from the piano with a smile on her face as he paced the living room and laughed when he hung up, as he ran his hand through his hair so much that it was sticking up in all directions.

"What's so funny?" he asked her as he sat next to her on the piano bench. She gave him the once over, noting that she felt herself shiver from the inside. She turned her attention to the piano in front of her, playing a random little tune.

"Nothing." She could see that he was staring at her from her peripheral vision and concentrated even more on the piano keys in front of her. The tone went deeper and frenzied as her heart started to beat faster.

Theo leaned in, using his index finger to tilt her chin towards him. She stopped playing, her hands dropping to her lap as he leaned in and kissed her. For her first kiss it was calm, yet commanding. After a few moments he pulled back and she looked at him intently.

"What was that?" she asked him. He looked back at her stunned, afraid that he gauged her wrong.

"I… I just…" She shook her head and laughed at him.

"Stop, it's okay." Suddenly Theo's phone started vibrating on the kitchen table and he sprung up to get it. "Hey… yeah… okay… we'll be there." He put the phone in his pocket and turned to Lily.

"Do we have a case?"

"What? No, they want to meet for dinner at some Chinese food restaurant." They got their stuff together and packed it away. As they were walking out to Theo's car, they passed his mother with his sister.

"Hey ma, I'm going out for dinner tonight," he said as he gave her a quick hug.

"Again? Sweetie you haven't been home for dinner for half the summer."

"I'm sorry Mom."

"How about you guys come here for dinner one night? I'll cook for everyone."

"Sounds good ma. We'll pick a date in the future."

"Alright dear. Be careful." She gave her son a kiss and ran her hand through his hair.

"Ma, quit messing with the doo." His mother smiled and allowed him to pass, but not before giving Lily a wink.

…

During the ride to the restaurant, Lily had a dumb grin on her face. She couldn't believe what happened. She wasn't sure if she wanted it, but the kiss confirmed what she had thought, she liked him. She threw furtive glances in his direction and she was pretty sure that he was doing the same thing.

The restaurant was called Sid's and they walked in to find that Booth and Brennan were already there. Booth had his arm around Brennan's shoulders as they laughed together. They separated upon seeing the Lily and Theo, who took the seats opposite. They sat close together, much closer than they had at any other time. Booth smiled at them and then leaned in to whisper something to Brennan, who had a grin on her face.

"Hey you two, what have you been up to?" asked Booth, not hiding the intent in his voice.

"We could ask you the same thing," replied Theo.

"Touché," said Brennan.

Just then Sid appeared at the table with food for everyone. "Hello, my name is Sid." They made quick introductions before Sid returned to behind his place behind the bar.

"So, what did you guys learn today?" asked Lily as she dug into the food. "Hmm how did he know that I like sesame chicken?"

"Sid's that good. Anyway we're getting stonewalled on the case right now. Tomorrow morning we're going to work on going over the files and looking at the remains to see if we are missing something."

"Sounds like fun," said Theo with a mouth full of wonton soup.

"Yeah. And then we have to the ball tomorrow," added Brennan.

"Oh yeah that," said Booth with a bit of resentment in his voice.

"You don't want to go?" asked Lily.

"No, it's just that those events tend to be really boring with people speaking, bad food, and a few hours of sitting around doing nothing."

"What? They aren't that bad Booth."

"Really Bones, come on think about it."

"Hey you two," interrupted Sid. "No fighting in the restaurant." He set down a tray of fortune cookies in front of them. "Enjoy guys."

"Thanks a lot man. Have a good night," said Booth. Once Sid walked away, Booth reached forward and took a fortune cookie. He cracked it open and discarded the cookie, wanting only the fortune. "You will exceed expectations." Booth smiled and put the fortune down. Theo started to giggle and everyone turned their attention to him.

"What's so funny?" asked Lily.

"What? You've never heard of the thing where you add 'in bed' to the end of a fortune. His worked perfectly." Booth and Lily laughed as they realized what he meant.

"I don't get it," stated Brennan.

"You will exceed expectations, in bed Bones. Get it?"

"Oh. Well I still don't understand how you can put the two together. Fortune cookies can't predict the future."

"Bones, it's just a joke."

Lily shook her head as she regarded the scene around her. She grabbed a fortune cookie for herself and opened it. 'The best is yet to come.' As she looked the fortune over and Booth and Brennan argued at the other side of the table, Theo grabbed Lily's hand and held it. Oh yes, the best is yet to come.


	10. Chapter 10

_Apologies for how long this took; I know it's been a while. I've been super distracted with the real life (why the heck do they even exist). Regardless, I try my best to get you the best quality work as fast as possible. _

_This was supposed to be my favorite scene in writing this whole story, but it turned out to be a real pain in the arse. I've written it so many different ways, none of which seemed to be good enough. I just left it as best I could, so if it stinks, I'm sorry but I'll try to pick up the slack as we approach the end._

_Now I know that there is supposed to be a musical number in here, but I didn't use the song lyrics because, well I don't know why, I just felt that it didn't look right. But remember, the song is "This I Promise You," by N*SYNC._

_With that, I leave this author's note with a thank you, thanks for the reviews and putting up with my lack of consistent updating. If only there was no college… boy that would rock. Thanks again y'all!!_

**Chapter 10**

To say that Lily was nervous was an understatement. Angela had arrived a few hours earlier and was currently working on Brennan's hair. Angela looked good in the dress with her hair up nicely as did Brennan. But she was worried.

Lily Walsh was not the kind of person that frequently got dressed up. She wasn't aware of the latest trends in fashion and she really didn't care. Science was more important to her and once she was a doctor scrubs would be her primary day wear. But as she waited for Angela to finish Brennan's makeup, she couldn't help but to look at herself in the mirror. Her normally curly hair was now straightened and left long, abandoning the ponytail that she was accustomed too.

"Okay, we're ready," called Angela from the bathroom. She and Brennan emerged and Lily looked at their transformations. It was amazing what Angela could do.

"When's Jack getting here with the limo?" asked Brennan as she put things in her little handbag.

"As soon as he gets here, which should be soon." Just as Angela finished the sentence, there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," shouted Brennan as she finished cleaning up a few things in her apartment. The door opened and Booth and Theo walked in. Angela smirked as Lily and Brennan stopped in their tracks. Booth was wearing a black suit and a white shirt with a red tie that matched Brennan's red dress. Theo wore a black suit with a deep red shirt and black tie. His hair was brushed neatly to the side and she could smell new cologne on him. Hodgins simply strode in and planted a kiss on Angela's lips.

Brennan cleared her throat and the two parted, slightly embarrassed. However they were not so embarrassed and just stood there beaming.

"Yes, are you two good now? Can we leave?" questioned Booth.

Angela smiled. "Of course, lead the way."

…

Lily watched out the window as the limo headed towards the location of the event. Outside, the life of DC never seemed to end as the bright lights of various establishments beckoned to potential customers on the streets. The limo made a right and pulled under an overhang. A man standing at the revolving door of the building moved forward to open the limo door.

"Good evening ladies and gentleman," he greeted with a smile. They exited the vehicle and walked into the building. The lobby was filled with well dressed people awaiting the opening of the doors. The masses walked around, glasses filled with varying types of alcohol. Lily and Theo stayed to the outside and watched as Booth and Brennan walked around. More like Brennan meeting with fellow scientists and Booth staying on her arm as a protector.

"Want to get some drinks?" asked Theo. Lily nodded and he gestured for her to go in front of him. She walked in front as Theo followed, her hand dangling behind her. He grabbed it and she couldn't help but to smile as his he tightened the grip. They got Shirley Temples from the bar and somehow were able to find Angela and Hodgins in the crowd.

"How long are we going to be standing around here?" asked Theo as he took a sip from his drink.

"I don't know," replied Hodgins. "Probably another 20 minutes or so."

"Lovely."

…

It was another half hour before they were seated at their table together in the hall. Lily looked around amazed at the decorations around the hall. The ceiling was high and made of glass; she was able to see the swirling colors of the setting sun above her. A large chandelier hung over the wooden dance floor, with the circular dinner tables surrounding the outer area of the room.

The chattering continued until there was the sound of someone tapping on the microphone on the front of the room. An older man with white hair stood at the front, putting on a pair of small glasses.

"Ladies and gentlemen, as most of you know I'm Leonard Stone, the head of the Jeffersonian. Tonight we are here to honor the employees of the Jeffersonian Institute that bring in the donors and the scientific information that give us the name that we are. Last week the Jeffersonian turned twenty-five years old. In that twenty-five years, many scientific greats, including a few Nobel laureates, have worked in these labs. Now after twenty-five years we are a fine institution that has many departments that aid in work all over the globe. Today we are here to honor those that bring the recognition to the Jeffersonian." The room erupted in applause and soon the head s of the departments was each taking turns honoring one member of their department. Finally Cam walked to the front of the stage.

"Ladies and gentleman, the pathology department is one of the youngest here in the Jeffersonian. Yet today we are one of the largest. Sorry paleontology." At the joke, there was laughter that rippled throughout the crowd. "But still we have many to thank for bringing the recognition to the department. Tonight, the Pathology division of the Jeffersonian would like to thank Dr. Temperance Brennan for her achievements." Applause rippled throughout the crowd as Brennan walked to the stage. She adjusted the microphone so that it was closer to her.

"I would like to thank Dr. Saroyan for choosing me, but I'm afraid that I can't take it. What we do in the forensics department is not possible without the help of my colleagues, Dr. Jack Hodgins, Angela Montenegro, formerly Dr. Zack Addy, and our FBI liaison, Special Agent Seeley Booth. Together we function as a family unit that helps to bring down the nastiest, most troublesome menaces to society."

The hall erupted in applause as Brennan took her seat. Lily smiled to see Booth stand up and give her a hug when she returned to the table, even whisper something in her ear that caused her to giggle.

"With that ladies and gentleman," said Stone. "May the festivities begin!" At his words, the doors opened and dinner was served.

…

They ate and told jokes, discussing everything possible but catching criminals. No, that was a topic reserved for another day. As they ate, the band played background music, light enough to know that it was there, but enough so that it wasn't silent. Lily ate her food which was delicious, and took in the sights, loving the atmosphere.

When the dinner plates were cleared, everyone sat back to relax off everything that they had just consumed. The band had started playing some music and many people stood and headed to the dance floor. Lily looked up and made eye contact with Theo, who nodded.

Theo stood and stretched his hand towards Lily. "May I have this dance?"

Lily accepted his hand and stood. "Of course." Using that as their cover, they hurried away and out of sight on the stage. They walked up and stood behind the curtain. Lily eyed the piano and then turned to Theo to see that he was rubbing a hand over the back of his neck. She looked at him curious and then smiled when she realized that he was nervous.

"Nervous Theo?" she asked with a smirk.

"I…no… well yes. Haven't _you_ ever been nervous before? I mean look at all the people out there."

She stepped close to him and smiled. "I've been in front of a few people before, gave a presentation in front of the entire school once. Singing should be nothing for you."

"Thanks for the kind words, but I've never really sang in front of people before. Just like karaoke with my friends a few times in my basement." Lily thought for a few moments on how she could boost his confidence. She peeked around the corner and looked to the sea of people.

"Theo, judging by the people out there, many of them probably don't even know what the song is supposed to sound like. So just go out there, have fun, and make it your own." She finished the pep talk with an added peck on the lips. He seemed to cheer up after that, just as the band finished playing their song.

Angela appeared around the corner with a huge smile plastered on her face. "Okay you two, are you ready?"

"Hell yeah," replied the now enthusiastic Theo. "Are Booth and Brennan going to dance?"

"Well I'll do the introductions and then get down there with Hodgie. If I have to, I'll goad them though with the way they've been acting I don't think they'll need much catalyst."

As the band finished, the singer looked over to Angela who waved. "Are you guys ready?" she asked. They gave a nod as their answer and she walked on stage. "Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Angela Montenegro of the Forensics Division. I helped with a lot of this gala and I even got a special musical guest that would like to show their appreciation for what goes on here." Angela gestured for them to get on stage. "Here we have Theo Girard and Lily Walsh, two interns that are working here for the summer; well Theo is working with the FBI, but he's with Booth. Anyone, here they are."

Angela clapped with the crowd as she stepped off the stage. Lily gave Theo one last look and a nod as she took the newly vacated piano spot. The older man with silver hair that had been playing before gave her a wink as he disappeared.

"Hi, tonight we just wanted to give you a little show to thank you for giving us the opportunity to grow in an area that can help us in the future. I'd like to see as many people up there and dancing as possible. This one's for all of you."

…

As Lily played, she couldn't stop grinning as she watched the scene in front of her. Just like the perfect gentleman, Booth had stood and offered his hand to Brennan, which she accepted. They were close, from what Lily could see when the people would part.

As Theo finished the song she shivered as she watched him. For someone that said that they couldn't sing, he was pretty good, and it made him look ten times better. They finished strong and received a standing ovation. They bowed at the front before running off just as the music was starting again.

"Follow me," said Theo as he grabbed her hand and led her through the sea of people. He stopped when they ran into Booth and Brennan who were still dancing together. Booth had a huge smile on his face as he patted his shoulder.

"Had no clue you could sing man! Great job!" Theo smiled and nodded, obviously something else was on his mind. They finally got outside into the warm night air. The back area had a fountain and many benches set around a garden. Lily figured that during the day when the weather permitted, they hosted outdoor events as well. They sat at bench near the fountain.

The air was cool without the summer sun warming it up, and the humidity of the past few days seemed to vanish. Lily looked up and was able to make out a few of the brighter stars through the light pollution. A light breeze rolled through the courtyard and she couldn't prevent the shiver that traveled through her body. Theo noticed and shrugged off his jacket so that he could drape it over her shoulders.

"Theo, you don't have to go through all the clichés tonight you know."

"Hey, I'm that kind of guy."

"Really, I never expected that from you. Then again, who knew that you could sing?"

Theo blushed slightly. "It's just one of the many things that I am good at. I've got skills, accept it." They shared a laugh. Lily sighed, sad that the night would soon be over. Theo raised his hand and ran it through Lily's hair. She turned her head so that when he stopped moving his hand cupped her cheek. "I'm really glad that we're together," he whispered.

"Me too," she replied before leaning into the kiss. They continued until they were interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. Lily pulled back and opened her eyes to see Booth standing before them. She was embarrassed that they got caught by someone who was basically like her father and inched as far away as she possible could from Theo.

"Er, sorry guys, but we were going to leave now. It seems Angela hurt her foot dancing the Cotton-Eyed Joe in heels." He spoke the words quickly and seemed visibly uncomfortable about the situation. Lily nodded and stood to follow back towards the reception hall. She took the lead, missing the glare that Theo sent Booth. Booth jogged to get ahead of them, allowing Theo to slip his hand into Lily's. Yeah, she thought to herself. This night should never end.


	11. Chapter 11

_Well, I'd like to pretend that there is an actual reason as to why I seem to be dragging this story out, but I'm not going to BS you. It's been giving me trouble lately trying to get the info through so at this point I've just done the best I can. I'm not great at case fics though, so I'm not sure if they would have a tight case or not, so I ask that you bear with me on this one. _

_I hope you enjoy and this story will probably have 2 chapters left… _

**Chapter 11**

Lily felt guilty for not getting up until nearly noon the next morning. Her body seemed to enjoy sleeping in and she did feel quite refreshed as she headed to the kitchen. She expected Brennan to be up working on the case file or something of that nature, but was surprised to see that her bedroom door was still shut. Lily shrugged; she did see that Brennan had downed a few glasses of red wine and she probably wasn't feeling as refreshed as Lily was.

Lily ate quickly ate an apple before showering. As she dressed her phone on the edge of the sink rang. The caller id told her that it was Booth. "Hello," she answered.

"Hey Bones isn't answering her phone. Do you know where she is?" In the background she could hear the sounds of cartoons.

"No, I don't think she is awake yet."

"Ah, I see." He took a sip of something. "Well I wanted to relax today, but I thought we should look at the case file one more time to just try to find something. Have Bones call me when she gets up."

"Wilco." Lily hung up the phone and finished getting dressed.

…

It took another two hours for Brennan to awake. Lily had already showered and ate and was currently sitting in the kitchen doing the crossword puzzle from the newspaper. Brennan rubbed her eyes when she got into the kitchen.

"What time is it?" she asked with a yawn.

"Nearly one."

"What?!" Brennan checked the clock for herself. "This is the latest I've ever slept. Did Booth call?"

"Yeah. He wants to meet up later to go over the case file and the evidence one more time. He said to call him."

"Okay, okay. I'm just going to run and shower." Brennan dashed back to her bedroom and took a swift fifteen minutes to get ready. Her hair was still wet and pulled into a bun when she returned to the kitchen. She wore a yellow blouse with three-quarter sleeves and a plain pair of black slacks. Lily was amazed at how beautiful she really looked.

"Dr. Brennan you really are beautiful." Brennan stopped what she was doing and looked at Lily.

"Thank you." Lily was confused by the look on Brennan's face; it seemed as though she hadn't heard that before or not often. But it was true that Brennan was certainly a beautiful woman. She grabbed her keys and gestured for Lily to follow. "Come on, we'll meet the boys at the diner for some lunch."

…

Brennan had phoned Booth on the way to the diner, telling him that she was up half the morning and that Lily had neglected to tell him that Booth had called previously. Lily tried to set the record straight, but a smiling Brennan shoved Lily away. Booth was closer to the diner and therefore they were their first and had ordered; cheeseburgers were apparently on their minds because there were already four sitting on the table in front of them. Booth also had a shoulder bag on the floor next to him presumably where he was keeping the files. Booth and Theo stood when they saw Brennan and Lily enter.

"We took the liberty of ordering already," said Booth as they all sat. "Hope you're in the mood for grease and fat!"

They spent the first few minutes silently preparing the burgers to taste with the addition of ketchup and mustard. Booth took a huge bite and then reached in the bag to take out the files. "Now, I think that we need to go over everything. We're at a standstill at this point and going nowhere."

Brennan nodded in agreement. She took the files from the autopsy while Booth was looking at the files from the brothers. Lily and Theo worked on eating their burgers, not paying much attention to the adults.

"Hey, what are you two doing?" scolded Booth. "You're a part of this investigation." He handed a few folders over to them. "An extra set of eyes is an extra set of eyes. Look for anything that seems out of the ordinary." The teenagers shrugged and looked through various records of property and other seemingly useless information. Plates were cleaned and coffee was brought, and yet they sat there trying to find something that could help them proceed with the case.

Clouds started to gather, signaling the arrival of an impending afternoon storm. They had moved around files many times now, each person looking for something that the other may have missed.

The silence at the table was broken when Booth hit the table with his fist and reached for other papers. Everyone stopped what they were doing and waited for Booth to find what he was looking for so that he could explain. Finally he settled on grabbing Darrell's rap sheet and started to give a sly grin.

"Okay, there is no record of the youngest brother for a period of six years. There have been a few domestic disturbances in the early 90s when the brothers were abused by their father, but there was never any record of the youngest brother."

"So what are you thinking?" asked Brennan.

"Their mother remarried in 1998 after Mr. Hunter was killed in a hunting accident and she ended up adopting the son of her new husband, Richard Porter. Kevin Porter was born in 1990, and attended the University of Miami in 2006 for a year before leaving. He didn't adopt the brothers' surname until after their father was killed in a bar fight two years ago."

"So?" asked Theo perplexed.

"So, now we know that we have to look back at Kevin Porter." Booth paid for the whole meal and together they packed up their stuff before heading to the Hoover Building. Booth immediately looked up Kevin Porter and returned an interesting file. Not only did Kevin Porter excel in high school, his major at college was chemistry. He dropped out due to insufficient funds and instead tried to join the Army, but failed the psychological tests where he was labeled a possible psychopath.

"Why didn't his information come up before under Kevin Hunter?" asked Brennan. "This case would have been solved last week."

"Don't know Bones, seemed he beat the system. Probably bought a new identity to distance himself. The kid seems to be a genius of sorts. If you were entering the drug business or some other illegal business, wouldn't you want to change yourself?"

"But I would have no reason to be in an illegal business," replied Brennan. "I have enough money."

"Never mind Bones, it was a hypothetical situation."

"Okay you two, what's next?" asked Theo. "I mean can we go and arrest him?"

"Not just yet," replied Booth. "We don't have any evidence on him just yet."

"What kind of evidence do you need then?"

"Well, we'll ask to get a warrant to search Kevin's financial records under his former name. We can see if there is any equipment purchases under that name."

"And I think we should find out what he worked on at Miami. Maybe that's where he picked up his work," added Brennan.

They spent the rest of the day working on gathering the information. Booth persuaded Caroline to get a lenient judge to authorize the seizure of Kevin Hunter's financial records. They had come in shortly before 8 that night. They looked through the statements together. Regular purchases were made once a month at a local pharmacy. A few quick phone calls let them know Kevin purchased Sudafed once a month, usually complaining about his allergies but he didn't have enough money for health insurance to get prescription pills.

Meanwhile Brennan made phone calls down to Miami, speaking with Kevin's former professors. He excelled in organic chemistry and was set to work on a pharmaceutical project through the school. Sweets had done a profile on Kevin and remarked that Kevin was the type of person to take charge, regardless of his position.

By the time Booth and Brennan went through all the information they gathered, it was fast approaching midnight. Lily had crashed on the couch in the lounge and Theo was slumped forward on a table also asleep. Booth had long shed his jacket and tie, and sat with his feet propped on a table as he sipped what the FBI called coffee. Brennan sat at that table with her head resting on her arm as she looked over the evidence they gathered. In the morning they would submit it in hopes of obtaining the arrest warrant.

"I'm so tired," whispered Brennan when she finally put down her pen.

"Yeah no kidding. Even though you did sleep til noon…" Brennan glared at him in response. "Fine, fine." Booth turned to Brennan and found her rubbing her neck. "You okay?"

"Yeah, it's just aching from looking at the papers all day. I just have to stretch it out a bit."

Booth however stood and walked behind her. "Never fear, let these magic fingers do their magic." Brennan started to object, but as Booth's fingers started moving, she instantly shut up.

"Wow Booth, that feels good."

"I know." Booth worked at the muscles at her neck and moved slightly down her back to continue. A yawn from across the room forced Booth back as if Brennan had given him an electrical shock. Both adults became aware of the two young'ins in the room.

Theo stretched a bit before speaking. "What time is it?"

"Almost midnight," replied Booth as he started cleaning things up.

"Oh shit. I just gotta go call my mom." He stepped into the desolate hallway.

"Booth, I think you should wake Lily." Booth nodded and went over to Lily. He sat on the sliver of the couch that was empty and gently shook Lily awake.

"Lily, we've got to get going, it's late." Lily opened her eyes and smiled.

"Thanks Agent Booth." As Lily gathered the things beside her on the floor, she smiled an even bigger smile. What Booth and Brennan hadn't known was that she was awake the whole time and watched the scene. Boy was Angela going to have fun tomorrow…


	12. Chapter 12

_**Almost over! Hope you enjoy this one. It's the moment I've been waiting for since I started to write this thing ages ago. And no, I'm not a sadist. **_

**Chapter 12**

"What the hell is with all this rain?" groaned Booth as he turned the windshield wipers up to their highest setting.

"Haven't you been paying attention to the news?" questioned a disbelieving Lily. "The remnants of that hurricane that battered the Virgin Islands are making their way up the coast. It's going to be windy and stormy for the next two days."

"Oh." Outside the weather was certainly dreary as the steady rainfall was blown in various directions by the howling wind that topped out at over twenty-five miles an hour. Traffic was slow as visibility was greatly reduced.

They arrived at the Jeffersonian twenty minutes later than they expected at twenty past eight. Booth and Brennan had simply dropped off Theo and Lily so that they could meet up in a closer location following Booth and Brennan's meeting with Caroline.

Lily and Theo headed to the platform once Booth and Brennan left, not expecting many to be there so early. However they were surprised when Angela walked out of her office once the duo sat down.

"Hey guys, where are the adults?" she asked after swiping her card to get on the platform.

"Getting the warrant for the for the younger brother's stuff." Theo made a face. "What, why couldn't we go?"

Lily simply shrugged. "Actually Angela, I've got a question for you." Angela took a seat at Hodgins stool.

"Go ahead, shoot."

"Are Agent Booth and Doctor Brennan together yet?" she asked curiously.

"Not to my knowledge, and believe me, I would know. Why?"

"Well last night after we worked on the documents, I sorta fell asleep, but not. I was laying on the couch with my eyes partially open and I'm pretty sure that I saw Booth rubbing Brennan's shoulders." Angela's jaw dropped. "And if this moron," she gestured at Theo, "didn't wake up I think that something may have happened."

"Wow," replied Angela, taking in the story. "I mean that's a major step in their relationship. Usually it's the occasional hug or touch or glance, but a mini-massage? That's big. I'll have a talk with her about that later."

Before they could speculate any longer, there was a sharp whistle that punctuated the lab. Everyone turned and looked at Booth and Brennan standing at the entrance. Both were wearing the windbreaker navy FBI jackets, except it look huge on Brennan. Booth's hair was soaked and the gel from the morning was already messed up.

"See you later Angela," they said as they dashed to Booth and Brennan.

"That was quick," commented Theo as they headed outside. Never had he been more thankful for parking garages.

"Well let's say that the judge we got was not the brightest judge on the bench. We hardly had to convince him," explained Booth.

The rain was still falling in sheets as they drove to the youngest brother's apartment on the outskirts of the city. The sky was dark and dreary and greatly reminiscent of a foreboding scene in a science fiction thriller. They arrived at the same time as the crime scene technicians. Together they left the car and bolted for the lobby of the building to avoid getting doused again. Warrant in hand, Booth led the way to the fifth floor apartment.

"FBI, open up!" he shouted as he banged on the door. However, there was no answer. He turned around to face Brennan, Lily, and Theo. "Stay here until the place is cleared." He took out his gun and gestured for the other agents to cover him as they entered. Booth kicked the door in a four other agents followed.

A minute later there were shouts that the apartment was clear and everyone waiting outside grabbed their equipment and entered. Lily noted that for a meth dealer/ college dropout the apartment was relatively clean. Sitting on the lone couch in the living room were two duffel bags. Booth held a piece of paper in his hand.

"Confirmation for a flight to Mexico. One way," he said.

"If his stuff is here now, where is he?" asked Theo.

"Good question. Where is he employed?" asked Booth.

Brennan racked her mind for a few seconds. "He was unemployed. What about the other brother, Darrell?"

"He lives back in the city, a decent apartment for a used car salesman," said Booth. "Kevin's probably going to warn his brother." He spoke to two agents quickly and was then gesturing for them to leave. "Let's go."

"Are we going to Darrell's apartment?" asked Theo.

"No, I think he's at work. We're going to the car dealership."

…

Booth's siren screamed as they made their way to the used car lot. It sat outside the city in an open area. Other agents were breaking off to check Darrell's apartment, but Booth was sure that he was probably at work. They would wait to make the move until backup could arrive, but the city was spread very thin due to the storms.

Booth turned off the siren as they got closer to the dealership. Lightning cut across the sky as they pulled into the dealership. It seemed quiet, too quiet almost as there was no one in sight. Booth parked the car and made to get out.

"Everyone stay behind," commanded Booth.

"Booth, shouldn't you wait for backup. You don't know what this guy is capable of. You shouldn't go alone." Booth thought for a second.

"Okay Bones, you stay way behind me, just watching the area. Kids, you stay here by this truck and you do not move. I don't care what happens, just don't move." Booth removed another gun from the glove compartment and handed it to Brennan. "Don't use it unless I say you can." They threw on their jackets and cautiously moved forward toward the office.

Lily and Theo moved up trying to get a better view of the scene, but Booth parked the car off to the side.

"Damn it, I can't see anything," cursed Theo. "I'm going out there to see."

"You're crazy! Agent Booth said to stay behind."

"Yeah, but what if something happened to them and we didn't see it. How would we know to call in backup or something." Lily mulled the thought over and caved.

"Okay, but we can't move far away from the car."

"Duh, I just want to slide over a bit to get a better view. That's all. I don't want to piss him off anyway. He'd probably kill me." They reached behind to get the waterproof jackets that Booth had given them earlier.

The rain was coming down so hard that the visibility was hovering near half a mile. Thunder boomed all around and it seemed like that remnants of the eye wall were currently overhead. Winds howled and Lily was half nervous, half amazed at the weather. They moved over from where Booth had parked to another car, a large SUV that was perfect to hide behind because they had a clear view of the office. Brennan was ducked behind a Corvette that sat near the entrance, but Booth was nowhere in sight.

Suddenly he appeared, running hard as he hurled himself over another car. He seemed to be signing something to Brennan. It looked like their cover wasn't blown. Then there was a shot that rang out. Lily jumped slightly at the shock of it.

"That's right, you're not going to listen to me. Fine, get yourself killed. But don't you dare take a shot at me!" shouted a figure in the distance. It came from the area that Booth had come running from just moments before. Two more shots were audible, but not from the man in the distance. The man that they could see raised his weapon as to fire back, but Booth stood, gun trained on him.

"Kevin Hunter, drop your weapon!" shouted Booth. Booth was now walking slowly towards Hunter, his gun high and trained on his head. "I said drop your weapon!" A shot came from the side, causing Booth to fall to the ground in some twisted manner. Brennan went to rise to help him, but stopped herself, realizing that she would instantly be shot as well. The man that Booth identified as Kevin walked forward with his gun trained on Booth. The man that was off to the side shooting at Kevin now rounded the corner, his gun also pointed at Booth. Kevin got to Booth and aimed at his head to put in the final shot. Brennan readied herself to pop up, but she never saw the other guy. She would be dead if she turned to shoot Kevin. Lily did the stupidest yet most selfless thing in her life as she stood up.

"Hey! Asshole!" she shouted and waved to get the man's attention. He looked up from Booth and raised his gun to Lily and squeezed off a few rounds. She ducked, but not quick enough as she felt a searing pain in her upper arm. More reports filled the air, but Lily couldn't tell who they were from as she was on the ground, a weird feeling coming from her arm.

"Holy shit!" screamed Theo as he saw what happened. Immediately he was pressing his hands to her arm to staunch the blood flow, but it wouldn't stop. Lily started to feel lightheaded and was soon fighting the sleep that washed over her.

"The bullet probably nicked the brachial artery," she managed to say. "U…use a tourniquet." The sleepy feeling was becoming profound and her eyes threatened to close. In the distance the wails of sirens of the backup were audible as was the voice of Booth and Brennan as they ran up.

"Jesus Christ," Booth shouted as he saw the scene. His formerly white shirt was stained red as he held his right side.

"I… I don't know what to do," cried Theo as Brennan knelt beside Lily. She too pressed her hands to the wound as Theo tightened the tourniquet on her arm. Booth was gesturing to the paramedics to rush over. The pain in Lily's arm disappeared, but the sleep was there, covering her.

"Stay awake Lily!' begged Brennan now as her hands were being lifted by the paramedics trying to get to her. "Stay awake!" Lily was trying, she was trying to tell Brennan that but the words were simply lost on her lips. The last thing Lily saw was Theo's horrorstruck face as he looked down at his red hands and Booth holding Brennan as she was lifted away by the paramedics.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Machines beeped steadily in with the hum of the medical equipment that the frail body of Lily Walsh was connected to. In the room stood Booth, Brennan and Theo, all barely dry from the tropical rains that continued to spill onto the city. Lily had returned from surgery only minutes ago after losing about half of her blood. Had they been even a minute further from the hospital, they would be staring at her on a cold metal slab. They still weren't sure of her prognosis as she was hypoxic for moments when her heart stopped beating on the way to the hospital.

Tears ran down Brennan's cheeks as she stared on, while Booth had a supportive arm over Brennan. His face was glared over; he was still shocked at what she had done to save him. Had he been more careful, she never would have needed to be in this position. Theo collapsed into a chair, and sat there stone solid, not moving.

A nurse came in moments later to shoo them out of the ICU. Booth tugged on Brennan's arm. "Come on Bones," he whispered. "We need to call her family." Brennan nodded and allowed herself to be lead away. Theo, however, was adamant about staying in the room. The nurse looked from Lily and Theo and gave a sad smile.

"Don't let anyone find out that you are here, or there will be riots." Theo gave a weak smile and the nurse left. When the door shut, he dragged his chair over to her bedside, grabbed her hand, and started to cry.

…

Lily was in pain; her arm throbbed with every heartbeat. She opened her eyes weakly, but even the weak light in the darkened room hurt her eyes. It took a few cycles of opening and closing her eyes before she was able to open them fully. Outside the sun shone brightly, her first indication that she had been out for an extended period of time.

She looked to her right to find her uncle sitting there, his head in his heads leaning forward. She tried to speak, but couldn't with the tubes in her mouth. She instead reached out for him. Her movement was weak and he only looked up when her arm fell feebly to the side.

He stood quickly and started to smile. "Oh my… Lily, thank God." He jogged to the door and made a gesture. Her aunt came running in followed by Theo holding her cousin Sam. They were followed shortly by a doctor. The doctor removed the tubes and then checked her eye movements.

"Well Lily," he said with a smile. "It looks like you defied odds." Uncle Sean gave her a few pieces of crushed ice that she gratefully swallowed.

"How long was I out for?" she was finally able to ask.

"Five days," he answered. "Everything looks to be in order. We'll run some tests in a little bit to make sure everything is okay, but you should be able to leave in a few days.

The doctor stepped out from the room and so did Theo, with promises that he would return. In reality she knew that he was just giving them the chance to catch up as a family first.

"Hey guys," she said, breaking the momentary silence. "How you get here?"

"Dr. Brennan just after it happened," started Sean. "She offered to buy us tickets for the next flight out. We got here later that night, but you were out, obviously. We've been here ever since."

"But what about your jobs?"

"Sweetie, you are more important than any job," replied Denise. Lily could tell that she was holding back tears. "I'm so sorry about the way we've treated you. You and Sam deserve so much better."

"Aunt Denise, no. I appreciate everything that you've done since Dad died. You've done the best that you can. Now things are turning around with Uncle Sean's promotion we can start all over again, like a family." The two adults just looked on with pride and leaned in for a hug. "Aw, you guys got all sappy on me." They smiled at her.

"Perhaps we should leave," suggested Sean. "I haven't showered since early yesterday and there is a young boy that seems eager to talk to you. We'll be back later honey." Sean and Denise leaned in to press a kiss to her forward before departing. As they left, Theo reentered the room. He sat in the chair that had been beside her bed since the first day and grabbed hold of her good hand.

"You had everyone so worried."

"Theo, I had to do it. Otherwise Booth would have been shot point blank."

"Lily, I don't think you realized how close you were to death. You were hit on the artery. Had we been an further from a hospital you would have died. You lost almost half your blood. Your heart stopped once on the way to the hospital." Lily took that all in. She was surprised at herself. She didn't think it could end up that bad.

"Well when you put it like that…" Theo gave her a stern look. "Theo, I wouldn't change what I did at all. It was an impulse action, one I'm glad I could make. I just wish I was a bit faster. How's my arm going to be?"

"It was close to the nerve, but the doctor was pretty sure that it missed the vein and that you would have full function when everything heals. You have some luck on your side it seems."

Lily smiled and squeezed his hand. "Thanks for being here Theo." Theo stood and pressed a kiss to her lips. When he withdrew, Lily laughed. "You're brave for doing that when my lips are drier than the Sahara and I haven't brushed my teeth in a while."

"Hey, I'm just glad that I can do it again."

…

Lily was released from the hospital three days later. Her aunt and uncle returned home since Lily had to return soon anyway for school. Her last night fell at the end of August. She and Theo were in Brennan's apartment while she was out to dinner with Booth. She had extended an invitation to them, but they politely declined, preferring to stay in their last night.

Lily was situated in the crook of Theo's arm as they lay in Lily's bed staring at the ceiling. The room was dark; the only light came from the dim hallway light that crept in from the cracked door. Lily's bad arm was in a splint and immobilized in a sling. It would have to stay like that for two months. She was glad to have an interesting story to go back to school with.

Booth had thanked her endlessly, in between scolding her for not listening to his orders to remain in the car. In the end, Lily and Theo received awards from the FBI for their courageous acts and they had received a standing ovation from everyone when the crew went to celebrate dinner that night.

Lily didn't like the attention though; she saw the act as something that anyone would do for a friend or at least someone in grave danger. She wanted to be a normal teenager, one that went to school and spent her spare time listening to music and playing games. She was happy to go back to that life the next day, but at the same time, she wouldn't get to see Theo that much. That was the one thing that bothered her so much.

"Theo, when am I going to see you next?" she asked finally. She never wanted to be that desperate girl that always had to see her boyfriend, but she did get curious.

"Well that depends. I'll be in college, so who knows with the work I'll have to do. But I mean Harvard isn't that far from you right? Couldn't your uncle drive you down?"

"Maybe, if he's not busy. You could also come up to visit me." She started laughing to herself. "I still can't believe that you got into Harvard."

"Funny," he groaned. "I had good grades, plus my parents went there. Besides, you're a genius. Maybe you can get in there when you have to apply this year."

"Yeah, we'll see." The silence of the apartment was broken by the sound of a door opening and slamming against a wall, followed by a crash.

"Oh shit," they heard Booth curse from the foyer. "I'm sorry Bones. I didn't mean it."

"Forget it Booth. It's not a big deal."

Theo sat up slightly and looked over to Lily and mouthed, "since when doesn't she care about artifacts?" Lily could only partially shrug. However, Theo's question was answered when a mass the size of two people bounced into the wall across from their room.

"Where are the kids?" asked Booth before planting what sounded like a wet kiss on Brennan's throat.

"I don't think they are hear, at least I don't hear them."

"Good, to your bedroom!" Lily and Theo tried very hard to repress giggles when the door to Brennan's bedroom slammed shut. Theo gestured for them to get up and they headed to the living room. Theo pointed to the vase that had fallen earlier; it was the same one that Parker had dropped.

"We better let Parker know that he's in the clear," whispered Theo. With one last look to the bedroom, the two teenagers headed out to Theo's car where they headed to the park to spend their last moments together for a long time.

_AN: Well this is the end… it's been a fun ride and I thank you all that have read and those who have reviewed as I dragged this story out for ages. There will be a short epilogue and then I'll be able to put this to rest. Thanks again!_


	14. Chapter 14

**I've been sitting on this forever now. I figured that I should just post it at this point because it's not going to change. This is the end and I'd love to thank all of you that have read, reviewed, favorite, or expressed interest in the story. You make it worthwhile to write.**

**Epilogue**

Lily wiped her brow, the sweat beginning again. The room in the church was getting warmer and smaller the longer she sat there in front of the mirror. She sighed as she looked at her image again. Her hair was done up perfectly, the dress was gorgeous, and the way the sun was shining it made her skin practically glow. Yet for some reason she couldn't muster a smile and the normally happy demeanor she normally kept.

She was pulled from her thoughts by a light knock on the door. "Come in," she replied and stood quickly, brushing away any remnants of sadness from her face. The door opened and the seemingly ever chipper Seeley Booth strode in. In the ten years that she had known him he never appeared to age. And with his two young children, he acted even younger than his age said. She was the closest thing she had to a father figure at the moment; her uncle was head of a task force that was working with the FBI that ate up all his time. Her aunt was waiting as long as possible before leaving for the wedding, but in order to make it, her uncle wouldn't be able to go. Lily tried to shrug it off, but deep down she knew it was contributing to her sadness somewhat.

Booth was no idiot when it came to reading people and he immediately knew that something was wrong, also evident by the fact that she was still inside the small room when she was due to walk down the aisle in a few minutes time. "Lily, what's wrong?" he asked in his concerned father tone.

"Seel I'm going to be honest, I'm not sure," she replied honestly because it was in fact the truth.

"Do you have cold feet?" he questioned with a wince.

"No, never. I love Theo. It's just, I just feel like I should be happier on my wedding day. It's not like in the movies where people are jubilant. It feels like any other day, except that I've been up since forever because I had to get my hair done."

Seeley moved so that they could sit down together on the small couch near the back of the room. "Lil, every day you get more and more like Bones. You shoulda heard the speech that Angela had to give Bones on our wedding day. Boy General Patton would have been outshined."

"Time out," interrupted Lily. "You saw Tempe before the wedding?"

"No of course not. I may have listened at the door because I knew she was going to have a hard time. Still it was different for Bones because she was living down her beliefs one marriage. But still, once she allowed herself to let go, I knew that she was ready for marriage. You just need to relax and let yourself enjoy this day."

"Clearly I'm trying, but it's just not happening." She sighed and stood, trying to walk off some of her nervous energy. "I.. I just don't know."

"Okay, let's talk. You're not having cold feet. You love Theo. You're standing in a beautiful church, wearing a beautiful wedding dress; you have almost a hundred people that care about you and your family sitting out there waiting for you to get married." He stood and walked over to Lily, taking her hand into his. "You have nothing to worry about. Just let go." She took a few deep breaths and closed her eyes in a last attempt to clear her mind.

There was another knock at the door, but this one heavy and rushed. "Yeah," shouted Lily. The door opened and this time her Uncle Sean ran inside. His suit was in disarray and his tie hung loose around his neck. He was out of breath and was leaning on the chair for support.

"I.. got here as fast… as I could." He took a few deep breaths. "Subway took forever, ran the last few blocks here." Lily didn't care and she stood up to give him a giant hug.

"I'm so glad you made it."

"Don't worry; I wouldn't miss it for the world. Otherwise this fool would have to walk you down the aisle." Sean meant to point out Booth, but somehow he had managed to slip from the room. "Someone should put a bell on him." Lily laughed as she let him go and fixed her uncle's tie. "So, are you ready to get married?"

Lily smiled a genuine happy smile. "Yes Uncle Sean, yes I am."

…

The reception hall was huge, its tall glass windows displayed the full moon in all its glory as it hung low in the sky. Following dinner, everyone sat at their tables laughing and discussing everything and anything. Lily sat next to Tempe and Seeley's first child, James who was attempting to make a fort out of his mashed potatoes under the guidance of his father. Every so often she would look over at Theo who had a permanent smile on his face since they said their I do's.

Following the dinner the DJ announced the first dance and Theo walked over to take her hand. They had decided before the wedding that no matter how lame it sounded, they would dance to "This I Promise You" as their song. Lily had been surprised that Theo had suggested it and had wholeheartedly agreed.

They lined up on the danced floor and the song started. They moved slowly, more swaying to the music than anything. Lily leaned into him, her head resting on his shoulder. "I love you Theo," she said over the song.

"I love you too baby." He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. Soon the other guests piled onto the dance floor and when the song was over, Sean walked over to cut in.

"Excuse me young man, can I have the next dance?" Theo passed her on and Lily danced with her uncle.

"Robbie would be so proud of you today Lily," he said at one point during the dance. Lily smiled at the thought of her father being here, the one that walked her down the aisle and the one that she would be dancing with. The one that she would soon announce that she was pregnant to.

"Dad's not hear anymore Uncle Sean, but I can't think of anyone else I would want to share this moment with."


End file.
